Extinction Event
by Speaker-to-Customers
Summary: Spoilers to 8:14 'Full Alert'. SG1 discover an advanced people who offer friendship and trade - until the Trust's rash actions turn them into implacable enemies who threaten to destroy Earth. Ch. 2 now extensively revised and expanded, Epilogue added.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: 'Stargate: SG1' was created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner and is owned by MGM Television Entertainment and Gekko Productions.

**Extinction Event**

**Part One: Contact**

On Earth Genghis Khan's armies had just captured Beijing and King John of England had been forced to sign the Magna Carta. Fifty-seven thousand light years away a Goa'uld System Lord had a minor altercation with a slave who addressed her in disrespectful fashion. The last of those events was by far the most significant…

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"You are insolent!" Ninmah spat. She raised her hand, ribbon device poised, and was on the verge of blasting the slave out of existence.

"Forgive me, Great Queen," the slave pleaded, dropping to his knees before her. "I meant no offense." A nerve jumped in his jaw, betraying his fear, but otherwise he controlled himself well.

Ninmah delayed her retribution, relishing his terror, and then a thought struck her. The man was a skilled craftsman who had produced items both useful and decorative for her pleasure. If she slew him he would produce no more. She lowered the ribbon device and debated what lesser punishment to inflict that would not hinder his craft skills.

_Craft_ skills. This slave was skilled with his hands, not with his tongue, and perhaps his insolence was unintentional. A mistake rather than a gesture of defiance.

"I accept that you had no malicious intent," Ninmah said. She searched her memory and came up with the slave's name. "You are forgiven, Ent'arah. Choose your words with more care in future."

"Thank you, Great Queen," Ent'arah said. He rose to his feet, keeping his head bowed, and backed away from the Royal Presence. "You are merciful."

"Too merciful," one of Ninmah's subordinate Goa'uld commented.

"Do you presume to criticize me?" Ninmah's eyes flashed and her hand rose again.

The subordinate met her eyes. "Yes."

Ninmah's eyebrows rose. "Your frankness is surprising, Enshag. Although, in a way, admirable. Did my mercy towards the slave give you the courage to also address me disrespectfully?"

"It did," Enshag admitted. "That is indeed my point. We control the slaves through fear. To treat them mercifully will diminish that fear and therefore weaken our control. To fail to punish insolent language is to take the first steps on a road that may one day lead to rebellion."

"The slave is a skilled worker," Ninmah said. "To slay him would deprive me of his services. I would be punishing myself as well as him."

"That cannot be helped," said Enshag. "It is the way things have always been. It is how they must be."

Ninmah's brow creased. The tip of her tongue showed between her full lips. "Perhaps. Perhaps not. What if there was a better way?"

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

The picture from the MALP's camera went up on a monitor. The sound link came through the speakers.

Daniel put a finger to his lips. "Wow," he said.

"I'll see that 'wow' and raise you a 'that's impressive'," Jack said. "Although, on second thoughts, maybe that's not really a raise."

"It is impressive, though," Sam chimed in.

"Indeed," said Teal'c. "It seems the planet is quite advanced."

The Stargate stood in a wide plaza. Beyond it, in the distance, tall buildings could be seen; majestic towers resembling the most stylish of Earth's skyscrapers. Closer at hand were seating areas shielded from the elements by sweeping, curving, translucent roofs; booths with people seated at positions resembling those of customer service or sales positions in Earth establishments; and three-sided display screens standing on impossibly thin central support poles.

Daniel stared at one of the screens. "It's cuneiform represented in LCD or LED form," he said. "Sumerian or Akkadian script. 'Supported by lodestones, wagons carry people, place of departure, follow arrows'," he translated.

"Maglev station platforms this way," O'Neill said.

"That would be a valid interpretation," Daniel agreed.

"I'm not interpreting, Daniel," Jack told him. "One of the signs is in English."

"Oh."

"Their technology seems to be slightly ahead of ours," Sam commented.

"I haven't seen anything you wouldn't see in Tokyo," Jack said. "Well, apart from the Stargate."

"Even so, sir," Sam said, "it's still a wonderful opportunity. They're bound to have things that we don't and we might well have things that interest them. We could trade technology."

General Hammond nodded. "That's a distinct possibility. We could use a success on that front to shut up some of the people in the Pentagon."

"And the NID," Jack muttered.

On screen one of the natives had approached the MALP. He scrutinized it and then spoke in slightly accented English. "People of the Tau'ri," he said, "if you can hear me, your machine is obstructing the way of passengers. Please move it to the side of the arrivals area." He pointed off to one side.

"Sergeant Alberts, move the MALP like the man requests," Hammond ordered.

The technician obeyed, bringing other parts of the area into view. The viewers noticed that the hazardous area in front of the Stargate, where the initial pulse of the event horizon on activation would extend, was delineated with yellow markings on the ground. More signs appeared. 'Welcome to Shuruppak'. 'Stargate Arrivals: Commonwealth Citizens'. 'Stargate Arrivals: Non-citizens'. 'VIP Travelers'. All were in three languages. Akkadian, English, and Goa'uld. Periodically they changed to display a message reading 'Scheduled services may be subject to a slight delay due to circumstances beyond our control. Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible.'

"They're running the Stargate as a regular transport service," Sam observed.

"Either they don't know about the Goa'uld or they're pretty confident in their ability to deal with them," Jack said.

"Some of the signs are in Goa'uld, sir," Sam pointed out.

"I noticed that," Jack said, "but the language might be hanging on from thousands of years ago. Like the funky writing that looks like a packet of thumb-tacks spilled on a hardware store counter. They might have forgotten what the snakes are like."

"I believe that there are concealed weapon positions covering the Chaapa'ai," Teal'c opined, "and perhaps force field generators too."

Jack narrowed his eyes. "You could be right," he said. "So, they're cautious but not paranoid. They look okay so far. Then again, so did the Aschen at first sight."

"We can't pass up this opportunity to make contact with an advanced civilization," Hammond decreed. "Shut down the Gate, sergeant. It won't help us make a good impression if we disrupt their schedules for too long."

"Yes, sir," the senior Gate technician said, and he obeyed.

"This is definitely one for my premier first contact team," Hammond went on.

"Who? Oh, you mean us," said Jack.

"I do indeed, Colonel," Hammond said. "Briefing at 08.00."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

The team emerged from the gate into the plaza. There were quite a few people around; not exactly a crowd but something like what you'd see at a medium-sized city's railroad station in the middle of the day. Hardly any of them paid any attention to SG-1. They were more interested in the Arrivals and Departures boards flashing up messages about an interruption, hopefully brief, to scheduled services.

"Well, this is a change," Jack said. "Somehow I don't think 'Hey, we're visitors from another world, take us to your leader' is going to get us anywhere much."

"Except for 'take your place in the line'," Daniel agreed.

"They're certainly pretty blasé about interstellar travel here," said Sam. "I wonder if Earth will be like this in, maybe, fifty or a hundred years' time." She pointed. "The 'Arrivals: Non-Commonwealth Citizens' desk seems like the right place to go."

"Indeed," said Teal'c.

"Ever thought about varying your expression of agreement a little, T old buddy?" Jack asked, as they followed Sam's suggestion and headed for the appropriate position. Behind them the Stargate shut down briefly and then 'whooshed' as it activated again.

"I have not, O'Neill," Teal'c said.

"Just wondering," Jack said. "Hello there," he greeted the woman who stood behind the 'Arrivals' desk. "We're from a planet called Earth. You might know us as the Tau'ri. We're exploring, looking to maybe trade technology, that kind of thing."

The woman nodded. "Oh, yes, we've been expecting you since your remote vehicle came through yesterday," she said. "You'll need to see a First Contact specialist from the Department of Interstellar Relations. I'll call them right away. Would you prefer to wait here for the specialist to arrive, perhaps in the cafeteria, or take the Maglev into town and be met at the station?"

Jack raised an eyebrow and looked around at his team. "What do you think, guys?"

"I'd like to see the Maglev," Sam said.

"Sounds good to me," Jack agreed. "Okay, we'll take the train."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

It was sleek, comfortable, and fast. Extremely fast. Prior to departure signs, in the same three languages that appeared to be standard, lit up displaying 'For your comfort and safety please remain seated during acceleration'. A spoken message over a speaker system made the same announcement. The train then moved off and gee forces pressed them back into their seats.

"It's not easy to work out speed without known points of reference," Sam mused, once the acceleration had slackened off and the train appeared to have reached full speed, "but I'd estimate it at something over two hundred and fifty miles an hour, maybe close to three hundred."

Jack nodded. "I'd say about the same. Not too shabby."

"The Chinese have something similar operating in Shanghai," Sam went on, "and there are a few demonstration lines in Japan and Germany, but it's still pretty impressive."

A passenger across the aisle overheard them and leaned slightly towards Sam. "The long distance lines are faster," he said. "They go at more than half the speed of sound. The ones under the sea, in tunnels with no air, reach ten times that speed. You are from outside the Commonwealth, I take it?"

"Yes," Sam said. "A planet called Earth."

"Ah, yes, the Tau'ri," the native said. "I have heard of you."

"I have to admit I'd never heard of your 'Commonwealth' before we arrived here," Sam confessed. "I don't even know if it's one world or several."

"Twenty-seven," the local told her. "The capital is on Akkad. This is Shuruppak, the second most important world, or at least we think so. The citizens of Eridu, Larsa, Uruk, or Sippar might disagree."

"Thanks," Daniel said. "Do you, would you, tell us something about your worlds?"

"There is hardly time," said the man. "The journey is short. You may learn something from watching our news broadcasts." He obviously correctly interpreted their baffled expressions. "Like this," he said, moving his hand over the back of the seat in front of his. Suddenly it was a viewing screen. "You operate the menus like this," he said, demonstrating. "I will leave you to it and catch up on the local news myself."

"The menu is in Akk- no, it changes," Daniel said, as he emulated the gestures. "Fascinating."

"Just a touch screen interface," Sam said, less impressed. "It is a beautiful design, though. Very user-friendly and intuitive." She grinned. "Bill Gates eat your heart out."

"Entertainment," Jack read. "Tempting, but I'd probably only just start getting into whatever they have instead of 'The Simpsons' and then we'd get to the terminus. Music, Politics, News, Documentaries, Children's Shows – hey, this place seems a whole lot like Earth."

"We'll learn most from News," Sam said. "Oh. Local, Planetary, Commonwealth, Galactic. They're pretty, uh…"

"Cosmopolitan?" Daniel suggested.

"That's the word," Sam agreed. "Which do you think we'll learn most from?"

"It's probably a moot point," Jack said, "seeing as how I think we're starting to slow down. Let's all pick something different. I'll take Documentaries for five hundred, Alex."

"I claim Galactic News," said Teal'c.

"Commonwealth for me, then," said Daniel.

"Then I'll go for Planetary." Sam turned back to the helpful passenger. "Excuse me, sir, how do we get sound?"

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"Okay, guys, looks like this is where we get off," Jack said, as the Maglev train slowed to a halt. "About all I learnt from the in-flight entertainment was that they have space travel by ship as well as by Stargate. And they have a military. Oh, yeah, and they have trees."

"All I saw was places and people that didn't mean anything to me," Sam said. "It was worse than watching Russian TV." She rose, retrieved her field pack from an overhead locker, and joined the others in making their way to the carriage door.

"I saw news of the hak'tyl rebellion," Teal'c said. "It was quite informative."

"And all I found out was that their Government is headed by a Queen," Daniel said, as they stepped out onto the platform, "but they have a Parliament as well."

"Sounds kind of British," Jack remarked.

"Will the Tau'ri from Earth," an announcement came over a PA system, "please make their way to the flashing red sign, where they will be met?"

"They're pretty well organized," Jack said. "And polite." He waved an arm in acknowledgement of the message, guessing that he was probably being watched either through a window or on some equivalent of CCTV, and headed for where a sign was indeed flashing the word 'Tau'ri' in red. "It beats having some guy standing there with a word scribbled on a card. Okay, let's do what they say."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

There were two men waiting under the sign. "Hello, there," one greeted SG-1 as they arrived. He was relatively young, maybe around thirty or so, and was clad in the pants, loose tunic, and collarless jacket that seemed to be the normal male apparel on this planet. "I'm Nelem'kish, from the Department of Interstellar Relations. I'm pleased to meet you."

"Thanks," said Jack. "Colonel Jack O'Neill, US Air Force. This is Major Samantha Carter, Dr Daniel Jackson, and Teal'c."

Nelem'kish's eyes widened. "You are SG-1? Really? Oh. Rē'û tabrītu ni! The Beloved Queen will definitely want to meet you in person."

"To the astonishment of me," Daniel muttered, automatically translating the Akkadian speech. "Or, colloquially, 'Astonishing'."

"That is correct, Dr Jackson," Nelem'kish confirmed. "Your knowledge of languages is as wide as the stories tell. It is almost unknown for us to meet people from outside the Commonwealth who speak our tongue."

"Akkadian is your native language, then?" Daniel asked.

"That is so," Nelem'kish replied, "although many of us also speak Goa'uld and, these days, English as well. Our Queen encourages learning of languages. Actually she encourages learning of all kinds." He half-turned and gestured in the direction of an archway labeled, in the customary three languages, 'Exit to vehicle waiting area'. "The station is not the best place for conversation. Please, come this way, and I will take you to the Department."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

The streets were wide, the cars seemed to be electric, and driving was on the left. The dominant architectural style was towers of steel and glass, although the buildings had more curves than the usual Earth skyscraper, and there were occasional smaller buildings. Screens on some of the buildings displayed pictures and slogans that were apparently advertising various products. "Very much like Tokyo," Jack commented, "only not as crowded. Or London. If they knocked down all the old bits and built everything new."

"I suppose there are only a limited number of ways in which one can lay out a city," Nelem'kish said. He used a miniature computer, worn on the back of his left arm and operated with a stylus on the touch-screen instead of a keyboard, to compose and send a message. "If there's anything you'd like a closer look at, or you'd like to know more about, just tell me," he said. "I'm afraid there's no-one on this planet qualified to do anything like negotiating a trade treaty and you'll have to wait until someone comes over from the capital. It may well be the Beloved Queen. In the meantime I'd be happy to show you around."

"How long is it likely to be?" Jack asked.

"I doubt if it will be long," Nelem'kish said. "If the Beloved Queen is too busy, or on vacation, then First Minister Enshag, or Interstellar Relations Minister Ri'mush, will come instead. They won't keep you waiting. I should be able to tell you more in a _geš_ or two."

"A _geš_?" Jack raised his eyebrows. "How long is that?"

Nelem'kish applied his stylus to his wrist computer. "Sorry, I'm not totally familiar with your time measurement system," he said. "I'll just..."

"Four minutes," Daniel put in. "The Akkadian time units, inherited from Sumeria, were the basis for the ones we use but there were a few differences."

"Thanks, Daniel," Jack said, cutting off Daniel before he could go into the differences in detail. Jack focused his gaze on Nelem'kish. "So, why do you call your ruler 'Beloved Queen'?"

"Because she is," Nelem'kish replied. He smiled broadly. "She sometimes says that it's a little silly, because it's not as if we have any other queens she needs to be distinguished from, and that we should just call her Ninmah."

"Great Queen," Daniel translated.

"Well, yes," Nelem'kish said, "but it's also her name. Most people call her Beloved Queen anyway. Because she is beloved by us all."

"So, she's a fair ruler?"

"Fair as in just, and fair of face also," Nelem'kish confirmed. "Actually most of the laws are made by the planetary Parliaments. Ninmah can veto them, but if she does she has to submit a report of her reasons, and if a law is put forward three times she has to pass it the third time. That hardly ever happens. She doesn't often veto laws and, the last time a law went through over her veto, it turned out to be a bad idea in practice and Parliament withdrew it themselves before the year was out."

"Does she make laws herself?" Daniel asked.

"She deals with most interstellar matters," Nelem'kish replied. "It's much more efficient to have a single person handling negotiations, with authority to make deals on the spot, than a committee. Her staff would work out the small details, such as the exact terms of a trade deal, but she would make the decision about if there is to be a deal at all. She has to submit treaties to Parliament for approval but I don't think they've ever made more than the most minor of amendments."

Jack zoned out slightly and looked out at the city. "Nice place you have here," he said. "So, what does this planet have in the way of sports?"

"Foot-racing is the most popular," Nelem'kish said. "We are also fond of wrestling, vehicle racing, and _pukku mekkû_. That is a game where teams of players strike a ball with sticks to drive it into a net."

"Sounds like field hockey," Jack said. "Ever thought about trying it on ice?"

"On ice?" Nelem'kish's eyebrows shot up. "Would the players not fall over?" His wrist computer beeped. "Excuse me." He opened its clamshell lid and scanned the screen. He broke into a beaming smile. "The Beloved Queen is indeed coming in person," he announced. "She is looking forward to meeting the famous SG-1 and she will be here in just over a _bêru_."

"Two hours," said Daniel.

"Hey, we're famous," Jack said. "You hear that, guys?"

"Until she arrives I am at your disposal," Nelem'kish said. "I can show you around the city, or at least part of it, or take you somewhere you can get something to eat. Whatever you wish."

"Well, I'd like to send a message back to home base," Jack said. "We'd need the Stargate open for that."

"That is not a problem," Nelem'kish said. "If you give me the Gate address I will arrange for it to be opened for long enough for your communication."

"Uh, we're not really supposed to give out the address until we've put the contact on a little firmer footing," Jack said. He shrugged. "You know how it is."

"I understand," said Nelem'kish. "One has to take precautions. I will take you back to the Gate station if you wish. The Maglev trip is short enough that it would be merely slight inconvenience."

"It's okay," Jack said. "We don't have to check in for a while yet. We can leave it until after we've had the meeting. Although," he mused, "if we're meeting royalty maybe I should go back to the SGC and get my dress uniform."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"Sir," Sam said to Jack, keeping her voice low, "we may have a problem."

Jack was in the middle of unclipping his P-90 to leave it, together with his field pack, in a locker provided by the Akkadians. He froze with the weapon in his hands. "I hope you just mean you can't decide whether to take them up on the technology demonstration or push for a shopping trip instead."

Sam gave him a brief, tight, smile. "No, sir. I've detected a Goa'uld."

Jack reflexively raised the gun. "Where?" Beside him Teal'c stiffened.

"More than one," Sam went on. "That guy Alulim, who Nelem'kish was talking to about arranging the conference room, for a start, and one of the girls working at the computer terminals. I'm pretty sure there are others around but they're the only ones I've pinned down to individuals."

"Are you certain, Major Carter?" asked Teal'c.

Sam bit on her lip briefly. "Not absolutely," she confessed. "Sometimes it can be hard to tell the difference between Goa'uld and Jaffa. But, well, you saw them. They weren't like any Jaffa I've ever seen."

"If a Goa'uld is working as a clerk or a secretary, or whatever, on a human planet," Jack said, "it means either there are one whole lot of infiltrators or else the girl is working on something top secret. I don't buy that. This just isn't the right kind of place. It's a local government office, on a provincial planet, with one small Interstellar Relations department tucked away in a corner. How are they going to have the kind of secrets that would interest the Goa'uld?"

"I agree, sir," Sam said. "It's not like on Langara. Kianna was working on a project to recover naquadria. It wasn't any huge surprise when we found out she'd been taken over by a Goa'uld. Here? I don't get it. If it was a cover for something secret they'd never have brought us here." She shook her head. "Maybe I'm wrong. They could have naquadah in their bloodstreams for some reason other than being Goa'uld. Or they're Tok'ra, although I don't see what Tok'ra would be doing in those jobs any more than Goa'uld."

Jack unclipped his gun. "Even if you're right there isn't much we can do about it," he said. "If we start flapping our mouths off we'd only be putting ourselves in danger. Or we wouldn't be believed, and we'd end up running along the freeway shouting 'They're here, already! You're next!' like in the movie. Maybe we'll drop a word in the Queen's ear once we get a feel for what she's like."

"Is it wise to divest ourselves of our weapons, O'Neill?" Teal'c asked.

"A few hundred rounds of ammo wouldn't make much difference if things turned bad," Jack said. He set the P-90 down on a shelf. "This city looks to be as big as Chicago. They could stomp us flat with sheer weight of numbers if they wanted. And how's it going to look if we change our minds now? No, stick with the original plan." He closed the locker door. "Okay, on with the tour."

They rejoined Nelem'kish and he escorted them through the corridors towards the exit from the office building. On the way they passed near to a water cooler, very similar to the ones that were to be found in a million offices in the USA, and a similar custom of shared gossip during water breaks seemed to prevail here. Three girls were at the cooler as SG-1 passed. One was the girl whom Sam had identified as a Goa'uld. She was speaking in Akkadian.

Daniel raised an eyebrow. He slowed down and listened. "Fascinating," he muttered, as the girl and her companions broke into a shared giggle. "Very intriguing." He realized that his companions were in danger of leaving behind and he hastened to catch them up. "_Inūmīšu nadānu__ lānu_," he muttered to himself as he went. "That would be 'in the time of handing over the body'. What can she mean by that?"

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

Nelem'kish ushered the members of SG-1 into an empty conference room. "Take your seats," he told them. "The Beloved Queen will be here very soon."

"Any particular items of protocol we need to know?" Daniel asked. "Like, in our world it would be customary to stand up when she entered the room. Is it the same here?"

"I believe that she would be happy for you to follow your own customs," Nelem'kish said. "I shall inform her that you are ready to meet her." He departed again.

Jack chose a seat and sat down. "I'll make a nice change to meet a Queen who doesn't want to torture us. Or to mate with Daniel."

"You do realize, sir, you've probably jinxed us?" Sam said.

Daniel sat down and clamped his legs tightly together. "I hope not."

"Hey, Space Monkey, the way they talk about her she sounds like a cross between the Queen of England and Angelina Jolie," Jack said, "or maybe like Princess Diana apart from not being dead. It might not be so bad." Daniel rolled his eyes and forced his legs even closer together.

The room door opened. Nelem'kish stood there, drawn to attention, and announced "Ninmah, the Great Queen of the Akkadian Commonwealth."

"Thank you, Nelem'kish," a warm and pleasant female voice said. Nelem'kish stepped aside and, as the members of SG-1 rose to their feet, Ninmah walked in. Alone, somewhat to Jack's surprise, without any aides or bodyguards accompanying her. Nelem'kish pulled the door closed behind her.

Ninmah wore a simple white dress. Her dark hair, long and wavy, hung loose. Apart from one slim gold bracelet she wore no jewelry. She was slim, pretty rather than stunningly beautiful, and seemed to be in her late twenties. Almost imperceptible laughter lines showed at the corners of her eyes and mouth.

"Greetings, people of Earth," she said. "Welcome to the Akkadian Commonwealth." She approached Jack and extended her right hand. "Colonel Jack O'Neill of the renowned SG-1, I presume?"

"That's me," Jack confirmed, taking the proffered hand. "Thank you, your, uh, Majesty."

"Please, just call me Ninmah," she said. "Major Samantha Carter, no doubt," she went on, turning to Sam.

Sam's jaw dropped. "You're a Goa'uld."

Ninmah raised her eyebrows slightly. "Oh? That explains the longevity, then, and the strength. And that thing I can do with my eyes." She grinned widely. "I was already aware of my race, Major Carter." She extended her hand again. Sam, slightly gingerly, shook hands.

"Tek ma'tek, Teal'c," Ninmah addressed Teal'c. She took hold of his arm in Jaffa fashion.

Teal'c, his eyebrow climbing to unprecedented heights, reciprocated her grip. "Tek ma'tek, Queen Ninmah," he replied.

"And you are Daniel Jackson," Ninmah concluded, holding out her hand to Daniel. "As you are no doubt already aware," she added, shooting a glance at Sam and grinning again. "Šulmu, Dr Jackson."

"Uh, greetings to you too," Daniel replied.

"I… don't understand," Sam said, studying Ninmah intently. "Are you… Tok'ra?"

Ninmah snorted. "Hardly. I am indeed Goa'uld, a member of the High Council of the System Lords, but I have my own way of doing things."

"I have to say so far I like your way a lot more than the usual," Jack said. "I take it you won't be putting us behind bars, torturing us, and doing… other things with Daniel?"

"Not unless your tastes run that way," Ninmah said. She took a seat at the head of the table. "Please, sit down, gentlemen, and Major Carter."

Sam still had a stunned, deer-in-the-headlights, expression on her face. "Do your people know you are a Goa'uld?" she asked, as she obeyed and sat down.

"Of course," Ninmah said. "I'm surprised that you didn't know. It's not exactly a secret. Perhaps no-one thought to mention it simply because it's so widely known that everyone took it for granted that you knew too." She grinned again. "You've had enough contact with the other System Lords that I would have thought one of them would have mentioned me. Still, I suppose they were too busy torturing you and – what exactly are those other things they did with Daniel?"

"It's a long story," Daniel said, his cheeks showing a hint of red. "You said you're one of the High Council of System Lords. You weren't at the summit two years ago that I managed to attend."

"Was that the one where they admitted Anubis to the Council? I had no direct interest. Lord Yu has my permission to vote on my behalf when I'm not present," Ninmah explained. "He is my closest ally among the other System Lords – my only ally, in fact – although recently Lord Yu has been unreliable. Irrational, even, on occasion."

"Lord Yu is unwell," Teal'c informed her. "We believe that he is approaching the end of his life."

"I suspected as much," Ninmah said, nodding.

"You had no interest in Anubis?" Daniel's eyebrows climbed higher than the rims of his glasses.

"At the time, no," Ninmah replied. "His identity was unknown and he was just another upstart who had achieved some victories over the lesser powers."

"Lesser powers?" Daniel probed.

"Baal, Bastet and Kali, Morrigan, and so on," Ninmah said.

"They're the most powerful of the System Lords," Jack said. "How come you call them 'lesser'? Just how big are your forces?"

Ninmah directed her gaze at him and gave a slight shrug of her shoulders. "I'm not going to reveal any military secrets," she said, "but the population of the Commonwealth is thirty-two billion. You do the math."

"Thirty-two _billion_?" Jack's jaw dropped.

"No-one has dared challenge me since I defeated Ra thirty years ago," Ninmah went on. "Technically I suppose that makes me Supreme System Lord but I'm really not interested."

"You defeated _Ra_?" Daniel's eyebrows were in danger of disappearing into his hairline.

"So did you," Ninmah said. "Thank you for killing him, by the way. He would have tried again, eventually, and although he couldn't possibly have succeeded against me he could have caused a lot of damage. I suppose Apophis might have been stupid enough to try to show his power by attacking me as well."

"Do you have Jaffa in your service?" Teal'c asked.

"Twenty per cent of the population, in round figures, are Jaffa," Ninmah said. "Ten per cent are Goa'uld. The Jaffa are not directly in my service. They are citizens of the Commonwealth with the same rights and responsibilities as everyone else. Most of them do serve in the military, for at least one ten-year term, however. After their service they remain part of the reserve forces." She met Teal'c's gaze directly. "There is no need for you to try to stir up rebellion amongst them, Teal'c, for there is nothing for them to rebel against. All know that the Goa'uld are not gods."

"And yet you rule over them," Teal'c said.

"I rule by consent," Ninmah replied. "The people choose their representatives. They make the laws. Was this not explained to you? I serve my people. They do not serve me, except indirectly, and I would have it no other way."

"How come?" Jack asked. "You're not kidding you do things differently from the other Goa'uld. Why?"

"Why did Egeria choose her path?" Ninmah asked in return. "Eight hundred years ago I decided that to rule by fear was inefficient. I sought another way and decided that if my people loved and respected me they would obey me of their own free will. I set out to make them love me and I succeeded. In the process something occurred that I had not foreseen. I came to love them in return."

"What of the other Goa'uld?" Teal'c asked. "Did they not think that you were foolish and act to stop you and usurp your place?"

"Of course," Ninmah said. "Many tried. All failed and died. Those who survived were those who saw the wisdom in my actions. We are one people now. Goa'uld, Jaffa, human; all citizens. No Goa'uld takes a host without consent. Including me."

"How do they get volunteers?" Sam asked. "My father volunteered to host a Tok'ra because it was the only way to save his life. Surely there can't be enough terminally ill people to fill the demand. Especially not if your medical technology is up there with your transportation and communications tech."

"It isn't a problem," Ninmah assured her. "There is a law that all Goa'uld must surrender control to the host every sixth day, absolutely and without reservation, except for serving members of the Armed Forces where the host is not in the military in his or her own right. Many people, certainly enough for our needs, regard that as sufficient compensation."

"Inūmīšu nadānu lānu…" Daniel muttered. "So that's what the girl at the water-cooler was talking about."

Sam looked a question at him. "The girl you recognized as a Goa'uld," Daniel explained. "She was telling her friends that 'Lunbau', presumably the host, liked a particular boy as well, and so there would be no embarrassment on 'the day of handing over the body'."

"Exactly," Ninmah said. "We call it 'Host Day' in English. It can be awkward if the host and the Goa'uld desire different partners. It has happened to me. Rarely, for Shamhat is not only my host; she is my best friend."

"You do the 'Host Day' thing too?" Daniel's eyebrows reached new heights.

"I would not demand that my people do something that I would not do myself," Ninmah said. "Sometimes affairs of state require that I cannot do Host Day on the day appointed, but in that case I give her a day at another time. She understands the necessity." She grinned again. "Usually Shamhat likes to spend her days at the beach, riding boards towed behind a fast boat – waterboarding, I believe you call it."

The three human members of SG-1 exchanged glances. "Uh, no, waterboarding is something different," Sam told Ninmah. "You mean water-skiing, or maybe wakeboarding."

Ninmah nodded. "Thank you. I shall correct my vocabulary accordingly." Her gaze played over Daniel and her grin grew wider. "Shamhat says that, if you are still on this planet on two days' time when she next has Host Day, she would like Daniel Jackson to come... water-skiing with her."

"Same old, same old," said Jack.

"Jack..." Daniel protested.

"Daniel," Jack replied.

"Uh, we'll see," Daniel said to Ninmah. "We hadn't planned on being here that long. Maybe."

"I can see why you don't pretend to be a goddess any longer," Sam remarked.

"Such a claim is only sustainable when the population is ignorant," Ninmah said. "I desired that my people become educated. It occurred to me that if I had no secrets I need not fear that my secrets would be revealed. I encouraged the people to learn. The other Goa'uld lords discourage learning lest the Jaffa discover that they are not gods." Her lip curled. "Fools. They stagnate as we advance."

"I take it your people have made advances on the military side too?" Jack asked.

"Of course," Ninmah said. "Any one of our ha'taks is easily a match for two System Lord flagships. The squadron flagships could take on an Asgard vessel on even terms. Our foot-soldiers have weaponry far superior to staff weapons." She stared into Jack's eyes. "And, before you ask, I will not share military technology with you. I may despise the methods of my kin but I will not betray them."

"They'd betray you," Jack pointed out.

"Perhaps," Ninmah said, "but those who betray me once do not live to do so again. Lord Yu has always kept his word to me, as for that matter has Baal, and the late Tilgath. Also, if I did give you military technology, one day in the future your world might turn it against the Commonwealth. I will not change my mind on this issue."

"Disappointing," Jack said, "but I can see your point. Hey, but what if we could offer you something you don't have? A weapon that can take out Anubis' super-soldiers, for instance?"

"We have such a weapon," Ninmah said. "We have already destroyed two of the Kull Warriors and captured two more."

"Oh. That's, well, good for you," Jack said, "and good for everyone in general, I guess, but bad for us in that it means we don't have any leverage."

"There are still things that we can trade," Ninmah said. "I am informed that you were impressed by our Maglev system. The one you traveled on is a third-generation system; on Akkad we have fourth and fifth generations. I can see no military application for a transport network that runs only along fixed lines and would have no objection to giving you the technology behind the fourth-generation Maglev."

Jack glanced over at Sam. "That could be worth billions, sir," she told him.

"Sounds good," Jack said, "but what would you want in return? Any technology we have you probably already have too. Uh, the internal combustion engine?"

"We gave those up fifty years ago," Ninmah said. "Too many unpleasant by-products. Once we developed electric cars that could match gasoline cars for speed and range the gasoline engine was relegated to some battlefield applications for which a naquadah generator is inefficient."

"Those cars sound pretty neat too," Jack said, "if we can come up with something to trade. Help me out here, Carter. Daniel, feel free to contribute."

"Most of the things I know about went out of use when Heron of Alexandria died," Daniel said. "Sorry."

"Everything I'm coming up with off the top of my head is military," Sam confessed. "There was that Clifford Simak story where the Earth guy trader gave the formula for paint in exchange for an anti-gravity device…"

Jack pointed at the walls. "They already have paint, Carter."

"I'm trying, sir," Sam protested. "Look, we can go back to the SGC and get some ideas there."

"I would be happy to make an agreement in principle, Colonel O'Neill," Ninmah said. "You may have the schematics for the fourth-generation Maglev and the electric car motors. If you cannot come up with any technology in which we would be interested then works of entertainment would be an acceptable alternative. There is always a market for such things."

"_Star Wars_," suggested Teal'c. "It is an epic that has true heart. Any with the blood of Jaffa would value it highly."

"It sounds interesting," said Ninmah. "Tell me more."

"Long ago," began Teal'c, "in a galaxy far, far, away…"

Jack groaned and sank his head in his hands.

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"It's a Goa'uld world, General," Jack reported.

Hammond raised his eyebrows. "You seem remarkably tidy to have fought your way out," he said.

"It's a… different kind of Goa'uld world," Jack expanded. "I hate the snakeheads but if there was one that I didn't hate it would be Queen Ninmah."

"You don't hate her the way you don't hate Mary Steenburgen," Daniel teased.

"She's… not bad," Jack admitted. "Which is a good thing. They're at least fifty years ahead of us in damn near everything, probably way more than that when it comes to the military stuff, and they outnumber us by a whole lot. A hell of a lot. She said the population of her planets totals thirty-two billion and I believe her."

"Is she a threat?"

Jack shook his head. "I never thought I'd say this about any Goa'uld, but, no. She could probably squash us like bugs, if she wanted, but she won't. Unfortunately she won't help us against the other Goa'uld, not even Anubis, but she's giving us some non-military technology that should be worth serious money. At least it might get the bean-counters off your back."

"She has also offered to supply arms to the hak'tyl," Teal'c added. "She despises Moloc as a barbaric tyrant and, although she will not openly act against him nor aid the Jaffa Rebellion as a whole, she would give aid to the hak'tyl. She has obsolete weapons no longer any use to her forces, stockpiled in vast numbers, and she says the hak'tyl can have enough to meet their needs. Staff weapons and zat'nik'tel."

"Obsolete?" Hammond's eyebrows rose.

"I think she regards our P-90s in the same way as we think of bows and arrows," Jack said. "It's a damn good thing she's not hostile. One thing we really, really, never want to do is get her pissed."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

A short time later came the mission on which Dr Janet Fraiser was killed. A succession of crises followed. The new President replaced General Hammond with a civilian newcomer. SG-1 learnt of a forthcoming attack by Anubis and a desperate race for the Ancient technology that could fend off Anubis ensued. Jack ended up frozen in stasis, his life threatened by the Ancient knowledge downloaded into his brain, and a mission to get the Asgard to revive him turned into a death struggle against the Replicators.

With all that was going on Ninmah, neither a threat nor an active ally, was a very low priority. The technology trade went ahead but otherwise she was almost forgotten. The only time she cropped up in dealings at the SGC was during the meeting with the delegation of System Lords who sought Earth's help against Baal.

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"Who's 'Ninmah'?" Dr Weir asked. "The System Lords seemed pretty startled when you suggested they ask her for help."

"She's in the briefing material," Daniel replied.

"Dr Jackson… Daniel," Dr Weir said, "it would take me days to go through all the briefings. I skimmed them, and I read up on Yu, Camulus, and Amaterasu. That's all I had time for."

"Queen Ninmah is a System Lord, possibly more powerful than all the rest of them put together, but she's not like the other Goa'uld," Daniel explained. "We've established friendly relations with her. We bought transportation technology from her in exchange for the Star Wars trilogy."

"Trilogy?"

"We weren't going to inflict Jar-Jar Binks on someone with whom we want to stay friends," Daniel explained. "Anyway, she's not going to help either side."

"Why not? If the System Lords are desperate enough to ask us for help and offer us hyperdrive technology…"

"They're scared of her ideas," Daniel said. "Her worlds run as a democracy with Goa'uld, Jaffa, and humans all equal. How long do you think the System Lords would survive if that became common knowledge among their servants? They'd rather be conquered by Baal. If I'd thought it through I wouldn't have bothered bringing her up. Forget about Ninmah."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

They did, to a large extent, and when Jack was awoken from stasis, and promoted to Brigadier-General and commander of the SGC, Ninmah was the last thing on his mind. When the hak'tyl rebellion was compromised, and they needed to be resettled, it never occurred to Jack to suggest that they seek shelter in the Commonwealth.

And then the Trust stole the Stargate and, before SG-1 could recover it, launched missiles through the Gate at Goa'uld worlds chosen totally at random. Missiles full of a concentrated version of the Tok'ra symbiote poison. Lethal to all Goa'uld and symbiote-carrying Jaffa. Capable of killing millions.

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"Unscheduled Off-world Activation!" The alarm blared out. Brigadier-General O'Neill entered the control room. "Any…" he began. The iris quivered with the impact of particles unable to reform, trapped within the wormhole, before he could complete the question.

"Missiles, sir," Harriman reported. The iris quivered again and again.

"Who the hell…?" Jack wondered. "Baal?"

"I don't know, sir," Harriman said.

"Yeah, I know, silly question," Jack said. He waited. The members of SG-1 joined him in the control room. The impacts against the iris continued. "That's a lot of missiles," he remarked, after a while. "If we didn't have the iris the base would be toast. If they're nukes _Colorado_ would be toast."

The rain of incoming missiles continued for about three minutes and then stopped. "Whoever is attacking is really, really, serious about wanting us dead," Jack commented.

"Indeed," said Teal'c. "The barrage was sustained but, thankfully, ineffective."

A minute later there was another impact. "You have to give them points for perseverance," Jack said, "but what are they doing? If the first missiles had got through there'd be nothing but a crater. What are they doing, bombing the rubble?"

There was only the one impact this time and then another period of silence.

"Sir, I think that last one was a recon probe," Sam suggested. "Intended to assess the damage from the bombardment."

"Could be," Jack agreed. Even as he spoke something came through the iris. A female figure. A dozen guns swung up to point at the apparition.

"Stand down," Jack ordered. "It's a hologram." He squinted at the slightly shimmering figure. "Ninmah!" he exclaimed. "Holy crap!" He rushed down from the control room. Sam and Daniel scampered after him. Teal'c followed at a more measured pace.

"Queen Ninmah!" Jack shouted. "What's going on?"

"O'Neill," Ninmah's hologram replied, her voice the metallic tones of a Goa'uld rather than the human voice she had used in their previous meeting. "Betrayer. Murderer."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Jack asked. "What did I do?"

The hologram figure's lip curled in disdain. "Do not waste my time with protestations of innocence. We know who is guilty. For what you have done you, and your planet, will burn." The image of Queen Ninmah vanished into non-existence.

"Now what was that about?" Jack asked the world in general. "I thought she was our friend."

Daniel chewed on his bottom lip. "Oh boy," he said. "Oh, this is bad."

Jack raised his eyebrows. "You have an idea what's gotten her so pissed?"

"I might," Daniel said. "I hope I'm wrong. Boy, do I hope I'm wrong."

"Well," Jack said, raising an eyebrow, "are you going to tell the rest of us?"

Daniel hesitated before replying. He grimaced, frowned, and ran his fingers across his lower lip. At last he spoke. "Did we ever get a full list of the planets the Trust attacked?"

Sam's eyes widened. "Oh my God!" she gasped. "The missiles…"

"Indeed," Teal'c agreed. "They slew many of the Jaffa and the Tok'ra. Shuruppak is listed in our records as a Goa'uld world, for such it is, and the traitors may have targeted it before we retrieved the Gate."

"Oh, crap," Jack said. "We're dead."

"Ninmah is a peaceful ruler but I sense she has the heart of a warrior," Teal'c said. "Her response to such a cowardly attack will be forceful and direct. The situation is dire indeed."

"Tell me about it," Jack said.

"I can tell you no more without definite information about the strength of her military forces," Teal'c said.

"It was a figure of speech, Teal'c," Jack said. "Although… yeah, getting some hard information would be good. All we know about her strength came from her. It's possible she was shooting a line."

"I doubt that most strongly, O'Neill," Teal'c said. "My belief is that everything Ninmah told us was the truth."

"When I suggested to the System Lords they should go to her for help against Baal they said the price she would ask was too high," Daniel said. "They never said she couldn't beat him." He shook his head. "She'd offered Yu asylum," he went on. "He was insulted by the offer but I think, maybe, he was thinking of taking her up on it if push came to shove. The System Lords definitely believe Ninmah is at least as strong as Baal."

"Yeah, I know, I know," Jack said. "I'm just clutching at straws. Some sign that maybe we're not just a jackrabbit in the path of a sixteen-wheeler." He sucked in one cheek, and then let it out and sucked in the other. "I'll get on to what few contacts we have left with the Tok'ra," he said. "Maybe they might have some intelligence on Ninmah's strength. Getting information out of them these days is like pulling teeth, especially since the Trust killed Zaren, but you never know. I'll ask nicely."

"And I will ask among the Jaffa," Teal'c said.

"Thanks," Jack said. He bit his lip. "And we have to find out what damage the Trust did."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"Unscheduled Off-world Activation!"

"Receiving IDC transmission, sir," Harriman reported. "It's the Tok'ra."

"Open the iris," Jack ordered. "Let's hope they have some good news." He went down to the Gate room to meet the Tok'ra visitor, hoping that it was Jacob Carter, but he was disappointed.

"Anise," he greeted the familiar figure. "Long time no see." He held back the 'not long enough' that he might have uttered in other circumstances.

"More than four years," Anise agreed. "Congratulations on your promotion, General O'Neill." Her smile was perfunctory and vanished as soon as she had spoken.

"Thanks," Jack replied. "So. Let's skip the catching up on old times. What can you tell me about Ninmah?"

"I have been on her capital world, Akkad, for the past two years," Anise revealed, "evaluating the suitability of the Commonwealth as a place to seek refuge in the event of our resistance being overrun by the Goa'uld." Her lips tightened. "I was there when Shuruppak was attacked by the Tau'ri."

"It wasn't us," Jack protested. "There are these guys, the Trust, they're fanatics. They stole the Gate and used it."

"It is not I whom you must convince," Anise said. "We have had our differences, complicated by Freya's feelings for you…"

"Which I would like to scrub out of my memories with soap and water," Jack muttered.

"…But I respect you nonetheless," Anise continued, "and I do not wish harm to come upon you or your people. Alas, it seems inevitable." She opened a small shoulder-bag and took out a clear case containing a silver disc. "I recorded a broadcast. When your request for information was passed on to me I transferred it to a medium that I believe is compatible with your machines. You must witness it at once."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

Jack switched off the DVD player. "We're screwed," he said. "I thought maybe it might be something we could apologize for, maybe make reparations, but how the hell do we say sorry for _that_?"

"You have to take this to the President, sir," Sam advised him. Her voice shook and there were tears visible in her wide grey eyes. Daniel wasn't present; he was hiding out to avoid Anise.

"The President, General Hammond, and the Joint Chiefs," Jack agreed. "Not that there's a damn thing they can do about it, but they have to know." He turned to Anise. "You lived there for two years, and I have to admit you're a pretty good intelligence operative, so you must have found out some useful stuff. Are Ninmah's ships as good as she claims they are, and just how many of them does she have?"

Anise told him.

Jack could feel the blood draining from his face. "I have to take this to the President," he echoed Sam's earlier words. "Right now."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

Jack pressed 'Play' and the screen lit up to show Ninmah sitting at a desk facing the camera. The bracelet on her wrist rattled against the desk as her hands trembled. Her face was tear-stained.

"The t-t-total fatalities are n-now confirmed at th… th… three million one hundred and forty-six thousand," she said. "Rescue services are clearing up the d-d-dead and trying to cope with quarter of a million orphaned children." She broke into sobs. Tears poured down her cheeks. "I have failed you," she cried, in a voice filled with grief and despair. "I have failed my people."

A voice from off-screen, possibly that of one of the cameramen, could be heard calling out "It's not your fault! Blame the bastards who attacked us." Other voices added comments such as "That's right!" and "Kill them!"

Ninmah wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, achieving little except to smear her eyeliner, and choked back her sobs. "I thank you," she said, "but I know that the failure is mine. It never occurred to me that anyone could do such a barbaric thing."

Her eyes flashed. "We know who is responsible," she went on, this time speaking in the metallic echoing voice of a Goa'uld who was making no effort to appear human. "They will suffer for this atrocity. I have given orders for the fleet to assemble. Half shall stay on guard to protect the Commonwealth from further attack. The rest shall go to Earth." Ninmah's face contorted and her voice reverted to its human form. "We shall burn the planet of those… animals… to a smoking cinder. Our dead shall be avenged!"

Jack paused the DVD and looked at the grim faces of General Hammond, General Maynard of the Joint Chiefs, and President Hayes.

The President shook his head. "Mass murder," he said. "Totally unprovoked. A slaughter of the innocents by _Americans_. I can hardly believe it."

"We knew they'd attacked Goa'uld worlds," General Hammond said, "without caring that they were massacring the rebel Jaffa, and killing deep cover Tok'ra operatives, along with their intended targets. But this..."

"It was sheer insanity," General Maynard added. "They claim to be patriots and say they want to protect Earth. How is making new enemies doing that?"

"I guess to them one Goa'uld is the same as another," Jack said, "but they couldn't have picked a worse target if they'd set up a think tank and planned for a year. We are – pardon my language, Mr President – totally screwed."

"I'd use worse," President Hayes said. "Just how bad is the situation?"

"As bad as it could get, sir," Jack said. "The Ancient weapon is drained and useless. Even if it wasn't it wouldn't be enough." Jack swallowed hard. "Mr President – Anubis came close to destroying us when he attacked Earth with thirty mother-ships. Ninmah has _twelve thousand_."


	2. Chapter 2

**Part Two**

**Countdown to Annihilation  
**

"What did Yamamoto say after Pearl Harbor, at least according to the movies?" President Hayes mused. "Something like, 'I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.' We're in the same position and it wasn't even us who launched the sneak attack."

"It's a pretty apt analogy," Jack agreed. "Ninmah's Commonwealth is a massively industrialized civilization, just like we were compared to the Japanese in '41. According to the Tok'ra they can launch a new mother-ship every four days."

"It takes a regular System Lord about a year to build a ha'tak," General Hammond remarked.

"Yeah, they do it the old-fashioned way, with slaves and manual labor," Jack said. "Ninmah's people do it the way we would if we had the resources. Prefabrication, multiple sites, automation."

"So, even if somehow we beat off their first attack – and frankly I don't see how we can," General Maynard said, "they'd just come at us again."

"That's about it, sir," Jack agreed. "How does the saying go? 'There's no stopping a man who knows he's in the right and just keeps on coming.' Ninmah knows she's in the right – she's just wrong about who's in the… wrong."

"Then all we have to do is convince her of the truth," President Hayes said.

"That's not going to be easy," Jack said. "I'll try, sure, but so far I haven't even managed to get her to listen. She's madder than hell." He sucked in one cheek. "Actually, that probably saved my life. If she'd called up acting all friendly, and said she wanted to visit us, I'd have opened the iris. No question. And the first thing I'd have known about her being mad at us would have been when a nuclear missile hit me smack in the face."

"We have to try," the President said. "There has to be something we can do other than fighting a battle at six thousand to one odds against. Give me something I can work with."

Jack sucked in the other cheek and released it. "I got nothing, Mr. President. Sorry."

"It sticks in my craw to say it," Hammond said, "but, unless the Atlantis expedition comes back with a dozen or so ZPMs, I think pretty much our only option is to surrender."

"The American people would never stand for it," the President said.

"It beats the hell out of being blown into a bazillion pieces," said Jack. "Being in the Commonwealth wouldn't be so bad even if the alternative wasn't total annihilation. Hey, Ninmah would probably just keep our existing political structures in place," he went on, warming to his theme. "The Brits would probably get all superior about it, what with it being a Commonwealth, with a Queen and a Parliament and everything. I can just picture Queen Elizabeth inviting Ninmah to tea at Buckingham Palace, and the English press trying to pair her up with Prince William. Or is it Harry who's the elder one? I forget."

"Jack," General Hammond said, "forget about the Brits. How do you think the Islamic world will react to an alien Queen becoming ruler of the Earth?"

"Oh. Right. Instant jihad. Not good."

"Or in America," President Hayes said. "The people don't know about the Stargate program. Hell, I didn't know until I got to the White House. If the first they hear about it is that we've surrendered to an alien civilization, without even a fight, there'll be riots like nothing we've ever seen."

"Every conspiracy nut who thinks the United Nations is trying to take over the world will head for the hills with a rifle," General Maynard said. "Fifty years of movies about alien invasions, that old TV series 'V', they'll all be convinced we've sold them out and they'll be trying to bag themselves an alien. And after a few of them succeed…"

"…then Ninmah will regard the surrender as just a ploy and incinerate us all anyway," Jack completed the sentence for him. "I was right the first time. We're screwed."

"Unless we can hand the Trust people over to her, gift-wrapped, with proof that they're the ones who attacked her world," Hammond said.

"The ones who did the actual firing got away into hyperspace," Jack said, "and they took the body of the one Teal'c killed with them. The guys who gave the orders are still here but we don't know who they are."

"I'll get the FBI and the CIA on the case," President Hayes said. "We know the Trust was behind a lot of Kinsey's campaign funding. That gives us a starting point. How much time do you think we have?"

"Well, organizing a fleet of six thousand ships is going to take time," Jack mused, "but Ninmah's people are efficient. The hyperspace flight is going to be the main factor. A standard Goa'uld hyperdrive goes at thirty-two thousand times lightspeed. Shuruppak is fifty-something thousand light years away so at that speed it would be, uh, about a year and nine months before they get here."

"That's a relief," the President said. "I was thinking along the lines of a battle fleet arriving a week on Tuesday. Maybe we can get through this after all."

"The _Daedalus_ will be completed by then," General Maynard said, "although that just puts the odds at three thousand to one instead of six."

"The trouble is," Jack warned the others, "Ninmah's ships aren't standard. The Tok'ra intelligence is that they're a big improvement on the usual Goa'uld design. Five, maybe six, times as fast. If that's correct they'll be here in four months."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"Thanks for the information," Jack said to Anise. "It might not save our asses but at least knowing what we're up against gives us a starting point. That recording was a big help getting the President totally on side."

"I am glad that I was able to help," Anise said. "I have heard that those of the Tok'ra High Council now regret that we ever became involved with the Tau'ri. I do not share that opinion. Things have not always transpired as we would have wished but your intentions were always noble. As were mine on occasions in the past where the results were… unfortunate."

"Like with those freakin' bracelets. Yeah, well, we have a saying about good intentions," Jack said. "By the way, don't you think it might have been a good idea to have given us a heads-up about the Commonwealth before now? Twenty-seven worlds with a combined population bigger than the whole rest of the Goa'uld Empire put together, the most powerful military force in the Galaxy, and you never even told us they existed."

"Our intelligence sources are our most valuable asset," Anise said. "To give away freely what we gain at great effort, and too many times at the cost of deaths, is something that the High Council is reluctant to do. In this instance I believe that the policy was counter-productive."

"Damn right," Jack said. "The Trust used out-of-date information from our records to pick their targets. If we'd known about the Commonwealth earlier it would have been labeled 'Extreme Danger! Don't get them mad!' and maybe they'd have let it alone. Or then again they might have been crazy enough to do it anyway."

"We made a similar mistake ourselves two hundred years ago," Anise admitted. "We incited a war between Ninmah and a System Lord named Lagash. Ninmah annihilated his forces and absorbed his worlds into what was, at that time, her Empire. Unfortunately she discovered the Tok'ra's part in the conflict's origins and we have been mistrusted in the Commonwealth ever since."

"That's going to be a problem if your people decide to move there," Jack commented.

"It will not happen," Anise replied. "I shall be recommending to the High Council that we should put aside all thoughts of seeking refuge in the Commonwealth in the event of disaster."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "I would have thought it was perfect for you. There isn't that much difference between Ninmah's way of doing things and the Tok'ra way. Is there?"

"To a large extent you are correct," Anise said, "and in some things her ways are better. I had to adopt their 'Host Day' custom in order to pass unnoticed there and both I and Freya find it to be pleasant and convenient."

"Is that why Freya hasn't spoken for herself while you've been here?" Jack asked.

"Partly," Anise said. She did not elaborate. "The mistrust still persists, and has flared up anew with the knowledge that it was the Tok'ra who first developed the symbiote poison, and the Commonwealth is unsafe for us now. That might not be an insuperable barrier. If we went there openly, and threw ourselves on Ninmah's mercy, I believe that she would grant us asylum. We would, however, lose our identity. Our people would be submerged in an infinitely greater pool. Before long the Tok'ra as a culture would effectively no longer exist."

"Still better than being massacred by Baal or whoever," Jack said.

"Perhaps," said Anise, "but the Commonwealth has flaws that make it perilous. Ninmah is an absolute ruler to an extent unmatched in Galactic history."

Jack's eyebrows ascended, although without dying first or receiving assistance from Oma Desala, and then descended again. "I thought she was a, what do they call it, constitutional monarch. There are all sorts of rules about what she can and can't do. It's supposed to be rule by consent."

"No-one in her so-called Commonwealth has ever known anything else," Anise pointed out. "The rules governing her are ones she introduced herself. I question how much freedom there really is." She glanced at the Stargate and then returned her gaze to Jack. "The Parliament is freely elected, true – but is it really mere chance that the First Minister is the Goa'uld who has been Ninmah's closest friend and ally for eight hundred years?"

Jack shrugged. "We're not planning on joining up," he said. "Earth has too many crazies like the ones who caused the problem in the first place and it would go horribly wrong. All we want is to persuade her not to kill us. I'm not going to start criticizing her politics. At least she's not a psycho conqueror like the rest of the Goa'uld."

"No, she is not, and her rule by manipulation is indeed much kinder and more benevolent than the rule by fear practiced by the others," Anise agreed, "but will that always be so? Consider what will happen if she dies. There is no provision for a successor and there are countless possible heirs. I foresee a civil war on a scale that cannot be imagined."

"Yeah, well, if she did die now they'd still wipe us out before they started thinking about anything else," Jack said, "and, as for the other aspects, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Right now our priority is to not get exterminated."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

Sam rapped on Jack's door. "Can I have a word, sir?" she asked.

"Sure, Carter, come on in," Jack said. "Take a seat. Don't start on at me about your double again."

"Actually I was wondering if there is any word yet from the _Prometheus_," Carter said. She sat down across from Jack but didn't meet his gaze square on.

"Nope," Jack said. "Don't worry, I'll let you know the second we hear anything." He tossed the file he'd been glancing through down on his desk. "You know, I kind of wish we hadn't sent the Atlantis expedition in the first place," he said. "I can't help thinking _Prometheus_ would have been better used combing every inch of the solar system for that stolen al'kesh rather than whizzing off to another galaxy on what might be a wild goose chase."

"A wild goose chase? The Ancient technology in Atlantis might be our only chance against Ninmah's armada," Sam protested.

"And there might be nothing there except alien cobwebs and dust," Jack said. "Still, we didn't know what was going to happen when the decision was made. Once the expedition had gone we couldn't leave them stranded there. I just hope they come back soon, preferably bearing gifts. The big honking space-gun type of gifts."

Sam nodded. "Me too." She pursed her lips. "While I'm here… did you really have to do it?"

"Do what?" Jack met Sam's eyes. "Oh. You mean why did I trick your evil robot twin into walking into a Gate with the iris closed at the other end? Well, it got rid of her – it, I mean – and I'd count that as a result."

"She wanted to talk, sir. She could have had vital information," Sam protested.

"Or disinformation," Jack countered. "I just don't believe in altruism from a Replicator. In the circumstances I couldn't risk us being distracted or maybe letting the double get away with information about our defenses. It's just a shame I couldn't have pulled a Pied Piper and got all the other Replicators to walk in after her. It. Kill all the nasty little clockwork bugs with one… iris."

A crease formed between Sam's eyebrows. "Actually, sir, that's not a bad idea," she said. "A variation on when Thor lured them to the Halla system. Except we make it somewhere lethal to them instead of trying to trap them." She gave a tight little smile. "The Asgard should have thought of the black hole right from the start. Maybe they just aren't ruthless enough. Sometimes nice guys finish last."

"Yeah, well, I'm not going to make the same mistake," Jack said. "I've got a whole raft of different mistakes I'm trying to work through." He heaved a sigh. "For what it's worth, Carter, I'd have let you run with it if we didn't have a more urgent problem. Six thousand state-of-the-art battle cruisers due to arrive in about three weeks' time ready to burn the Earth to a cinder. And Ninmah's still not answering our calls."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"Thor," Jack said. "Buddy of mine. We're going to get blitzed out of existence. Please say you can help us."

"I fear that there is nothing that the Asgard can do," Thor replied. "It is most regrettable."

Jack grimaced. "She can beat you?"

"That is an accurate summation of the situation," Thor confessed. "We have lost much in the conflict with the Replicators. Even at the peak of our power the Commonwealth of Queen Ninmah would have tested us to our limits. The best of her ships are inferior to ours by only a small margin and her advantage in numbers is vast."

"What about the Protected Planets Treaty?" Jack asked. "Was that just a lot of hot air or does it actually mean something?"

"The technological assistance that we have given you recently contravenes the terms of the treaty," Thor confessed. "Even if that was not the case the poison attack upon a Commonwealth world would be a clear breach on your part. Ninmah's role as a guarantor of the treaty was significant but is probably now a thing of the past."

"Like I've already tried to tell Ninmah, if she'd only listen," Jack said, "the poison gas was nothing to do with us. It was a bunch of crazies going directly against the policies of the United States. It's the same as when Loki cloned me. We understood that it was just the one guy acting on his own. Nobody blamed the Asgard."

"Loki's rash and illegal actions affected only a small number of people," Thor said. "The only deaths that resulted were those of the clones he created. An attack resulting in the deaths of millions is an entirely different matter. It is quite understandable that Ninmah's people are unwilling simply to write off such a drastic action as the crime of individuals."

"Even though that's exactly what it was? For crying out loud, Thor, there has to be something that you can do. Just talk to her, even. Tell her how things really are."

"I am afraid that Ninmah regards the Asgard as allies of the Tau'ri and not to be considered impartial in this matter," Thor said. His little mouth closed tightly and his big black eyes blinked. "I am sorry, O'Neill. I am at a loss and unable to think of any way in which I can help you."

Jack snapped his fingers. "Suppose we went back in time and told ourselves not to go to Shuruppak? Okay, it could screw up the time-line, but how much worse could things get than being exterminated?"

Thor blinked again. "There are significant hazards to such a course of action," he warned. "In a number of hazardous situations, since your first encounter with the Commonwealth, catastrophe was averted by a very narrow margin. There is no guarantee that the same result would be achieved a second time. Even a minor change could have severely adverse consequences. Your planet could be destroyed by Anubis, or my civilization could fall to the Replicators, or both. In any event your sun is going through an abnormally long period of quiescence. My preliminary calculations indicate that there will be no solar flares suitable to initiate temporal travel for some considerable time."

"How long?"

"Not until March 2010 by your calendar," Thor informed him.

"Crap." The corners of Jack's mouth turned down. "We're still screwed. I'm getting tired of saying it." He raised his eyebrows at Thor. "Something else I'm getting tired of saying is 'Why didn't anyone tell us about Ninmah?' The Tok'ra didn't mention her, yeah, but then they're a bunch of secretive assholes. I'd have expected better of you."

"It was not regarded as necessary," Thor said. "We did not foresee any potential conflict between yourselves and the Commonwealth. They are formidable but not aggressive or expansionist. We did not anticipate that elements in your society would be foolish enough to provoke them."

Jack shook his head. "How long have you guys been studying Earth? And you still haven't learnt that there just isn't any limit to how foolish some of us can be? Don't you know Murphy's Law?"

"I am not familiar with that term, O'Neill. Your legal systems are rarely relevant to the Asgard," Thor said.

"It's a scientific law, not a legal one," Jack explained. "It says 'if anything can go wrong, it will, usually in the worst possible way'. That law, and a whole lot of hairbreadth last-minute escapes, is pretty much the story of my life."

"Perhaps you will have yet another last-minute escape," Thor said. "Queen Ninmah has always acted in a rational fashion when we have interacted in the past. It is my belief that she will give you a final chance to plead your case before going through with the destruction of Earth."

"Your belief? Well, I hope you're right, but I'm not going to pin all our hopes on it," Jack said. "We're going to keep on trying to find a way out. You're sure there isn't anything that you can do?"

"I will deliver another statement to Queen Ninmah repeating my conviction that the SGC and your governments are innocent of complicity in the attack upon her planet," Thor said. "Other than that I am afraid that all I can offer you is assistance in the evacuation of Earth."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

Jack raised his eyebrows at Daniel and the woman who accompanied him. "Daniel," he said, "when you went off on the _Prometheus_ I was hoping you'd come back with a big honking space gun. Or, as second prize, with Dr Weir, seeing as how she's about the only person who might be able either to talk Ninmah down or pull a bluff about the Ancient weapon on her the way she did with the System Lords. Instead you bring me the girl who tried to steal our spaceship." He leaned forward. "Why?"

"She can help us," Daniel said. "Jack, meet Vala Mal Doran. She's tough, resourceful, and very intelligent."

"You forgot to mention 'beautiful'," Vala put in. Jack would have classed her as 'attractive' rather than 'beautiful'. Her nose was perhaps a little too large, and her face had too much character, for the conventional ideas of beauty. She had a slim yet very curvaceous figure and appeared to be about thirty. "Especially when I'm naked," she added, shooting a glance at Daniel from under thick dark lashes.

Daniel's cheeks acquired a tinge of color. "That's not important."

"It is to me," Vala said.

"What is important is the resourceful and intelligent part," Daniel said, "and that Vala has a whole lot of contacts. Okay, they're dubious ones, but she can reach people we can't."

Jack tore his gaze away from Vala and back to Daniel. "And this is important because?"

"We can't talk to Ninmah because she simply won't respond to our calls," Daniel said. "We can't go in person because she has her own version of the iris now and we'd just go 'splat'."

"While you were away I tried passing a message onto her through Baal," Jack said, "but he wouldn't play… ball."

Daniel winced. "That was bad, Jack, even for you."

"It wasn't intentional," Jack said. "You were saying?"

"I thought maybe Vala could get through where we can't," Daniel said. "If she can set up a meeting…"

"I guess it's worth a shot," Jack agreed.

"I expect to be well rewarded," Vala said. "I accept weapons-grade naqahdah, gold, other precious metals, rare isotopes, saleable technology… actually almost anything as long as it's transportable and sufficiently valuable."

"I didn't think you were a volunteer," Jack said.

"I could have escaped, you know," Vala claimed. "I let the opportunity pass because Daniel had told me about your planet's predicament. I would be willing to help even without payment. Of course, if you have honor, you will shower me with gold and jewels if I help save your planet." She batted her eyes at Daniel again. "Or at least shower with me."

"I hope that last bit wasn't directed at me," Jack said.

"Of course not," Vala said. She ran her gaze over him. "Not that you're that bad, for an older man…"

"Hey! Who're you calling old?" Jack protested.

"Old-er," Vala said. "As I said, you're not bad, but you're not my Daniel."

"Just ignore the innuendo, Jack," Daniel advised. "I think she can help us and I think we should pay her for it."

"That's fair," Jack said, "but the up-front part of the payment is going to be small. Just in case."

"Not too small," Vala said. "I'll have expenses. But I don't mind waiting for my…" she looked at Daniel again and licked her full lips, "…reward."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

Jack walked up the path to his house carrying two packs of beer and a sack of groceries. Life was going on, almost as normal, despite the impending destruction of Earth. Evacuation through the Stargate was under way but it was severely limited. In a couple of week's time the grocery store clerk, and everyone else Jack knew outside the SGC, would probably be dead. Attempts to get through to Ninmah via Lord Yu had so far failed, Baal was undoubtedly laughing himself sick, the Asgard had regretfully said that they had insufficient remaining resources to win a war against Ninmah, and Daniel's dubious acquaintance seemed to have simply disappeared into the galaxy with her advance payment. It wasn't looking good for Earth.

Jack went up the steps onto his porch, reached for the door, and froze. It was open. He hastily put down the packages, snatched off his sunglasses, and drew his pistol. Cautiously he entered the house.

The last person he would have expected was standing by the fireplace. "Bad news," said former Vice President Kinsey, "you're out of Scotch."

"If I'd known you were coming I'd have hidden the good stuff," Jack said, "and laced the rest with rat poison."

"Now that's not friendly, Jack," Kinsey said. "Anyone would think you're not pleased to see me."

"Oh, I'm delighted to see you," Jack said. He picked up a phone and began to dial.

"Who are you calling?" Kinsey asked.

"A girl I met recently," Jack said, "by the name of Kerry Johnson." He showed his teeth as he smiled. "She's with the CIA."

"Walking into your house when the door wasn't locked, and drinking your Scotch, isn't exactly a Federal crime," Kinsey said, "and, even if it was, the CIA doesn't have any jurisdiction within the US of A."

"Don't worry, she'll bring along plenty of friends from the other agencies," Jack assured him.

"Damn it, Jack, I've come here with information," Kinsey protested. "I can help you. You want to take down the Trust. I can make it happen."

"Yeah, well, I'll feel happier about that once we have you somewhere you can't wriggle out," Jack said. "With the end of the world due in about a week I'm really not in any mood to play games."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

Four days later Jack was in even less of a mood for games.

"We're at Defcon One," he said to Russian liaison Colonel Chekov, as they walked together through the corridors of the SGC. "We have birds in the air and missile subs at sea, radio chatter says your guys have the missile regiments ready for launch and the Blackjack regiment fuelled up and on the runways, and the Chinese are on full alert too. When Ninmah's fleet gets here all she'll have to do is plant a flag in the rubble and go home."

Chekov grimaced. "The Kremlin is convinced that your administration has been compromised by the Goa'uld," he said. "Our only hope is that I can persuade President Mikhailov otherwise."

"I should have just shot Kinsey in the face when I caught him in my house," Jack lamented. "Look, we've evacuated eight thousand Russians through the Stargate. I don't get how your people can still think we're the bad guys."

"I would guess that they now believe that you simply sold our evacuees as slaves to the Goa'uld," Chekov said, "and that the whole threat from Queen Ninmah is merely a fiction designed to frighten ourselves and the Chinese into…" he paused, probably searching for the right English word, "…acquiescence with American – Goa'uld, in their eyes – plans for the Stargate."

"And it just gets better and better," Jack moaned. "In a few days time there'll be conclusive evidence, in the shape of thousands of ships bombarding the planet, and the only things around to see it will be cockroaches."

"The Goa'uld infiltrators will be able to retrieve the Ancient weapon from the Antarctic base before Ninmah's fleet arrives," Chekov said, "and there will be no-one to stop them."

The two officers reached the lab and went in. "Carter, please tell me you have something," Jack said.

"Actually, sir, I think I do," Sam said. She opened a file and started reading out information. Jack tuned out the details but latched onto the salient points; General Kiselev, the Russian Defense Minister who was primarily responsible for Russia's heightened alert status, was probably a Goa'uld. Jack was skeptical about Carter's assertion that Kiselev having discarded his glasses was proof but, if it would help convince the Russian President, he'd be happy to go along with it.

"Good work, Carter," Jack said. "Chekov, if you can get through to Mikhailov…"

"I shall try, General," Chekov assured him. Several minutes of frantic telephone conversations followed but, eventually, the Russian President was convinced. Kiselev's attempt to launch without authority was prevented and both sides began to ramp down their alert levels.

Jack wiped his brow and took a call from the _Prometheus_. "Hey, Colonel Pendergast," he said. "Did you get them?"

"We have two live prisoners, General," Pendergast reported. "We took casualties doing it. Five dead, two injured, and we've taken damage."

"That's a shame, Colonel," Jack said, cringing inwardly at the thought of writing letters to the relatives of the dead, the most dreaded task of any General, "but the prisoners might save the lives of everyone on Earth."

"They're Goa'uld, sir," Pendergast pointed out.

"The Goa'uld knows what the host knows," Jack countered. "If they can be made to talk we can put ourselves in the clear."

"We might not have time," Pendergast said. "The sensors picked up traces of other ships while we were searching for the al'kesh. We're taking another look now."

"Uh-oh," Jack said. "Let's hope it's the Asgard."

"I don't think so, sir." Pendergast was silent for a moment and then came back on. "Two hundred plus ships. They're slightly outside the orbit of Jupiter and they're not heading directly towards Earth."

"Crap," Jack said. "They're early. Two hundred mother-ships could take us out by themselves but I bet it's a recon force."

"Our shields are down to forty per cent and we have engine damage," Pendergast said. "Should we take a closer look?"

"No, get back to base," Jack ordered. "We need those prisoners. I need Daniel back here. And get your damage repaired. If there's a battle coming up you need to be in top shape." Jack signed off and turned to Carter.

"Two hundred plus ships out there beyond Jupiter," he said. "Best case scenario is that it's the Replicators – and that's something I never thought I'd say. If it's Ninmah we're out of time. Get everything we have scanning to learn more. I'm going to make one more try at getting her to speak to us. If that doesn't work… all we can do is send _Prometheus_ out on a suicide mission and speed up the evacuations."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"The first group was two hundred and forty ships, ha'tak size or larger," Sam told Jack. "Three more groups, also with two hundred and forty in each, have arrived to join them. They've taken up positions in the asteroid belt and seem to be moving in a search pattern."

"The Sumerians and Akkadians based a lot of things on the number sixty," Daniel said. "I'd guess that each group is four squadrons of sixty."

"That tallies with what Anise told me," Jack agreed. "What the hell can they be looking for in the asteroid belt?"

"Perhaps a weapon of the Ancients," Teal'c suggested.

"Maybe," said Jack, "but if there was one there how could they know about it and not us?"

"There could have been something in some text that was taken off-planet when Ninmah left Earth," Daniel suggested.

"That was thousands of years ago," Jack said. "Why would she wait until now?"

"I agree that it is not logical, O'Neill," Teal'c said, "but I can think of no other reason."

Sergeant Harriman tapped on the open office door. "Sir," he said, as Jack looked up and nodded, "new reports on the unidentified fleet."

"Thanks, Walter," Jack said. "Come in. What's the situation?"

Harriman opened a file folder. "The ships have clustered around one of the asteroids, sir." He peered at a file. "It's designated 704 Interamnia."

"May I?" Sam asked, extending a hand for the files. Harriman handed over the folder and Sam scanned the report.

"Thanks, Walter, keep me posted," Jack said. "If they were looking for something they found it pretty damn quick," he remarked, as Harriman left.

"Impossibly quick," Sam agreed. "They can't have been looking for an artifact. It must be something about the asteroid itself." She opened up her laptop and began searching for data.

"I guess it's too much to hope for that they'll all get hit by asteroids," Jack said.

"Only in the movies, sir," Sam said. "Most of the asteroid belt is empty space in real life. Anything big enough to be a threat to a shielded spaceship they'll be able to detect thousands of miles away."

"So much for the asteroid scene in _The Empire Strikes Back_, then," Jack remarked.

"It's pretty unrealistic," Sam said. "When we flew through the Leonids we were only dealing with tiny debris fragments. Specks of cometary dust. No big rocky pieces could ever be that densely packed in reality. Hmm. 704 Interamnia. The fifth largest asteroid. Diameter about three hundred and fifty kilometers – two hundred and twenty miles – and mass 6.9 times 10 to the 19th kilograms. Composition dense and solid, materials unknown."

"Don't tell me," Jack said, "they're going to build a Death Star. I knew we shouldn't have let them see _Star Wars_."

Sam shook her head. "That would be a dumb plan," she said. "An insane amount of work when they have a fleet that could destroy us all anyway. Maybe they're using it as a staging post for their assault, or…" Her voice trailed off. Her cheeks paled. "Sir," she said, "I think they're going to use the asteroid as a missile."

"Oh. Well, we've been through that one before," Jack said. "We just need another big bomb, or a hyperspace field. Only, this time make sure the wire to cut really is red."

"It's not that simple, sir," Sam replied. "The asteroid the Goa'uld fired at us three years ago was a pebble compared with Interamnia. We're dealing with something at least sixteen times as massive. A bomb the size of the one we were going to use last time wouldn't even come close to what we'd need to divert it. I don't know if every nuclear device on Earth put together would be enough."

"What about sending it into hyperspace?"

"We were operating right at the limits when we did that," Sam said. "To expand a field enough to cover Interamnia – we'd need a whole new technology. I don't think it's even possible, sir."

"You've done the impossible before," Jack said.

"I'll do my best," Sam said, "but this is a whole new league of impossible. Especially with an invincible battle fleet there to protect it from anything we try."

"How about using that booby-trapped ZPM Camulus palmed off on us?" Jack suggested. "Dr Lee said it could blow up the Earth. It has to be powerful enough to vaporize an asteroid."

"It's too powerful," Sam said in reply, shaking her head. "If it exploded on Earth it would destabilize the sun and destroy the whole solar system. Even out in the asteroid belt that would be a strong possibility." She did a few quick calculations. "It would throw Mars out of orbit and send it spiraling in towards the sun. We're in the way. That's the best case scenario. Everything else that could happen is worse."

"Okay, file that one as Plan Z," Jack said, "only for use if Plans A through Y don't work. Plan Y is we attack the asteroid with hummus."

Daniel frowned. Teal'c raised an eyebrow. Sam chuckled briefly but then turned serious again.

"Sorry if I'm just shooting your ideas down, sir," she said, "but I just can't think of anything that would work. And when I try the 'what would Buffy do?' approach all that comes to mind is throwing myself off a tower."

"Do not fall victim to despair, Samantha Carter," Teal'c said. "It may be that Queen Ninmah does not truly intend to smite Earth with the asteroid. It could be merely a stratagem to lure our ships out to where they must fight beyond the range of the Ancient weapon. Once they were destroyed Ninmah's fleet would be able to make an attack upon Earth with only ground-based weapons with which to contend."

"I don't think she needs to bother with faking us out," Jack said. "More like she just wants to kill all of us without her people taking any casualties in the process." He turned back to Sam. "So, what happens if it hits? Total destruction of Earth?"

"Pretty much, sir," Sam agreed. "It would make a crater the size of a _continent_. Bigger. The Chicxulub meteor was only six miles wide and it made a hole a hundred and ten miles across and wiped out the dinosaurs. I can't even imagine what Interamnia would do. Firestorms across the globe, volcanic mega-eruptions and titanic earthquakes, and the amount of debris thrown up would block out the sun for millennia. I don't even think the bacteria would survive. The ultimate extinction event."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

The Gate shut down, after a party of four hundred Chinese evacuees finished passing through, and Jack turned away. "I hope they all speak English," he remarked to Teal'c. "The galaxy's confusing enough already without it turning into _Firefly_."

"There are no Jaffa in _Firefly_, O'Neill," Teal'c pointed out. "I do not believe that the addition of a relatively small number of Chinese speakers will make any significant changes to galactic civilization."

"Good," Jack said, "because…" He broke off as an alarm sounded and the call of 'Unauthorized Off-world Activation' was made. "What now?"

"Receiving IDC transmission," Harriman reported. "It's the one we gave to that Vala Mal Doran person, sir."

"About time," Jack said. "Open the iris. And call Daniel." He left the control room and made his way down to the Gate room, followed by Teal'c, and Daniel joined them a moment later.

The shimmering surface of the event horizon parted and a figure came through. It was indeed the slim brunette who had tried to steal the _Prometheus_. She wore drab and shapeless overalls, instead of the form-fitting black that was obviously her preference even on limited acquaintance, and there were blonde streaks in her previously all-black hair. Her arms were bound behind her back.

"Oh, crap," Jack groaned. "She gave away the iris code. Close the iris!"

Vala turned around, spat out some colorful curses at the closing iris, and then resumed her progress down the ramp. She spotted Daniel and her eyes lit up. "My Daniel!" she cried. "Please, get me out of this unflattering clothing."

"Uh, I'll try to find you something else to wear," Daniel said.

"That wasn't what I said." Vala shifted her gaze to Jack. "General! It's time to present me with large quantities of valuables."

Jack raised his eyebrows. "It looks to me as if your mission was a total failure."

"Oh, you mean this?" Vala turned her head and tried to look over her shoulder at her bonds. "I don't think they trusted me. They took… precautions."

"You tried to steal something," Daniel said.

"No I did not," Vala denied. "They never gave me the chance. Are you going to untie me now?"

"Miss Mal Doran," Jack said, "what about your mission? Did you manage to get a message through to Queen Ninmah?"

"Of course," Vala said. "She is willing to meet you and the leader of your government."

"The President?"

"If that's what he's called," Vala said. "Personally I find Kings and Queens much easier to understand. And they usually have more in the way of gold and jewels. Do you know how much you can get for a good quality crown?"

"You'd have been really disappointed with King Harry Maybourne's crown," Jack remarked. "The meeting. How soon, and where?"

"Twelve hours from now," Vala said. "You have to go to the co-ordinates shown on the note in my back pocket." She gestured with her bound hands. "Would you get it out, Daniel?"

"Oh, for crying out loud," Jack said, as Daniel hesitated. Jack produced a knife and sliced through the plastic ties that fastened Vala's arms together. "Get it yourself."

Vala reached into her pocket and pulled out a notepad. "Thanks," she said. "Okay, these are the co-ordinates and instructions." She held the pad out to Daniel but Jack seized it instead.

"That's not Shuruppak," Jack said at once. "Neutral ground?"

"They didn't tell me all the details," Vala admitted, "but I think it's just a change-over point. You'll be taken somewhere else from there."

Jack read on. "No remote vehicle probe allowed. Only six people? One has to be me, one has to be the President, and no-one can take weapons? The Secret Service aren't going to be happy about that."

A new voice entered the discussion. "One of the delegates must be me."

Jack turned his head. "Oh, hi, Colonel Chekov. I didn't know you were here."

"I was nearby. I hastened here as soon as I heard that your emissary had returned," the Russian liaison said.

"Emissary," Vala said, nodding. "That's a nice title. And I love that accent."

Jack ignored her. "You want to come along? With only six places I don't know if that's feasible."

"It is necessary," Colonel Chekov insisted. "Someone must represent the countries other than the United States. I heard 'twelve hours' mentioned as I was entering. Is that the time until the meeting?"

"That's right," Vala confirmed.

"Then it would be impossible to get President Mikhailov here in time," Chekov said, "or any other official senior to myself who is already briefed on the Stargate program."

"That's a good point," Jack conceded, "and, yeah, somebody speaking for the other countries would be a good thing, seeing as how we're all going to be squashed flat by the asteroid together, but the Secret Service will have a cow. We have to take the prisoners along, they're the only evidence we have, and that leaves just one free slot. Filling it with a Russian won't go down well."

"No doubt the PSB would take the same attitude were it our President who was to go," Chekov agreed, "but I still insist that it is vital that you have representation from non-Americans. If not me, then it must be the Chinese. I do not believe you would want that."

"It could be the British," Jack said. "Although, I guess, out of the three options, I'd rather it was you. I'll put it to the President and see what he says."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

President Hayes stood in front of the Gate and smiled. "I'm going to another planet. I'd never have believed it."

"Sir, I strongly advise against this," the head of the Presidential Protective Detail cautioned.

"I know, you've already said it, Brad," the President replied, "about ten times. I don't see that there's any other way."

"At least take me with you instead of one of the prisoners," the Secret Service agent pleaded.

"Sorry, Brad, no can do," President Hayes said. "It's not like you could guarantee my protection anyway. If you carry a gun the deal's off and they could have any number of people waiting at the other end of that thing." He gestured towards the Stargate. "An armored brigade, even."

The Head of Detail grimaced. "It's your call, sir," he said, obviously still unhappy, and he walked away to the side of the Gate room.

The President rubbed his hands together. "Okay, let's go," he said.

"Don't step onto the ramp before the wormhole forms," Jack warned him. "The 'kawoosh' when the event horizon forms disintegrates anything it touches."

"I'll be careful," the President said. He grinned. "Is the dress uniform for my benefit, General O'Neill? I doubt if it's what you usually wear when you go… 'off-world', if that's the right terminology."

"Actually, sir, I'm wearing it for Queen Ninmah," Jack replied. "In this situation I guess that every little helps. And, yes, it will be the first time I've ever worn it off-world." He turned to face the control room. "Okay, Walter, dial it up."

The Stargate rotated and the chevrons, one after another, locked into place. The President stared in fascination as the last chevron locked and the swirl of energy shot out over the ramp. He had seen a Gate activation once before, when he'd visited the base shortly after Jack's appointment as SGC commander, but observing from the control room wasn't the same as standing there waiting to go through.

Colonel Chekov was in his dress uniform too, with the Russian cap with the exceedingly wide top that Jack always felt looked slightly ridiculous, and with an impressive array of medals on his chest. "I am ready, General O'Neill," he said.

"Okay," Jack said, "prisoners first."

The three Trust prisoners, arms fastened behind their backs, were hustled up the ramp by burly S-Fs. Two of them were Goa'uld hosts, who had crewed the al'kesh that had once belonged to Osiris, and who had been captured by the _Prometheus_. One was still human, quite possibly the only senior member of the Trust who had not fallen victim to Goa'uld possession, tracked down by CIA agent Kerry Johnson shortly before Kinsey's visit to Jack's house had set in motion the events that had almost ended in nuclear war. The Goa'uld-possessed Kinsey had died attempting to escape from _Prometheus_; Jack had resisted the temptation to celebrate with a party.

Once the prisoners had been thrust through the event horizon Jack escorted the President to the Gate. Colonel Chekov brought up the rear.

"To boldly go where… you guys have been loads of times before," President Hayes said.

"It's best if you breathe in before you go through the event horizon, sir," Jack advised him.

"Oh. Right." The President took a deep breath, as suggested, and stepped through the shimmering blue circle. Jack went with him. Colonel Chekov followed a second later.

They emerged in a dry plain that seemed to be absolutely deserted, except for the three prisoners, as far as the eye could see. The Stargate, a DHD on a nearby plinth, and a few clumps of straggly dry grass were the only things that stood out from the sandy soil.

"Wow," Hayes said. "That was incredible."

Jack stared at the barren surroundings. "Where's the welcoming committee?" he wondered. "I would have thought they'd have been here waiting for us. Probably with heavy weapons trained at the Gate."

"It is strange," Colonel Chekov agreed. "Perhaps they mistrust us so much that they are observing from orbit."

Jack shook his head. "As a back-up, maybe, but there still should be something here."

"Or the timescale was based on hours very different to our own," Chekov suggested. Behind him the wormhole closed and the Gate became an empty ring.

"Shuruppak's rotation was only a few minutes different to an Earth day," Jack told him. "It would –" Jack's words were cut off short as the Goa'uld prisoners suddenly sprang into action.

The one who had known as Parker in human life leapt at the President, butted him in the face, and shouldered him to the ground. The other, who as the Trust agent Jennings had been one of those who had fired the poison missiles, wrenched at his cuffs with such force that he freed himself. He raised mangled hands, dripping blood from gouges made by the steel and with a dislocated thumb hanging limp, and struck out at Jack.

"Help us, Wilson," Jennings called to the other prisoner. "We can escape."

The still human Trust member hesitated. Colonel Chekov acted to remove the threat before Wilson could make up his mind. The Colonel drove a punch into Wilson's stomach, grabbed the head of the bound man, and pulled it down to meet an upward knee-strike. Wilson collapsed and Chekov went to the aid of President Hayes.

Jack fought back against Jennings. The Trust agent had been an NID operative originally and was highly trained in hand-to-hand combat. The Goa'uld was using all that knowledge, together with his enhanced strength, and seemed to be impervious to pain. Jack held his own but no more.

A red dot appeared on the Goa'uld's chest and wandered upwards, flickering out of existence briefly and then reappearing, and Jack immediately hurled himself to the ground. Jennings drew back a foot but the intended kick never landed.

The red dot steadied on Jenning's shoulder and then vanished in a spray of blood. Jennings reeled back away from Jack. There was no sound of a shot; instead there was a whip-crack noise, not loud, that Jack recognized as coming from the passage through the air of a supersonic bullet. It was almost drowned out by Jennings' scream.

Jack rolled and came to his knees. He saw soldiers seeming to erupt out of the ground all around. Covers were being thrown aside and clouds of sand and dust billowed up. They'd been lying in pits, under rigid plastic sheeting, with the native soil spread on top of the coverings to make the positions virtually indistinguishable from the surrounding terrain. These were not the traditional Jaffa in armor, sacrificing mobility for unreliable protection, but were clad in desert camouflage outfits not unlike those of the US Army. Guns, not staff weapons, were trained on the Earthmen.

Jack retrieved his uniform cap, which had fallen off during the struggle, and rose slowly to his feet. He brushed sand from his clothes. "Thanks," he said to the approaching soldiers. "You okay, Mr. President?"

"Nothing hurt but my pride," President Hayes answered. "Thanks for the help, Colonel Chekov."

"My pleasure, Mr. President," the Colonel replied.

The Goa'uld Parker snarled and seemed to be contemplating another charge at the President. A dozen red dots clustered in the center of his chest rapidly changed his mind.

"Nobody move!" one of the approaching soldiers ordered.

"That's fine by me," Jack said. He made a quick head count. Three squads of six closing in, with a double-size squad of twelve staying back at long range; drastic overkill in the circumstances, especially as the rear party seemed to have some sort of vertical launch rocket system in their weapons pit, probably with laser guided missiles. If they'd stayed in their original concealed positions, and assuming that the rifles had a rate of fire similar to that of a P-90, the platoon could have mowed down anything coming through the Gate in less than battalion strength.

"Help me," the injured Jennings appealed. "I'm badly hurt." The entrance wound was tiny; the exit wound was eight inches across and the way his arm flopped made it evident that bones were shattered.

"You're Goa'uld, aren't you? Heal yourself," was the unsympathetic reply. "All of you! Strip off all your clothes."

"You have to be kidding," Jack said. "And after I got all dressed up, too."

"Isn't that a little… unusual for a meeting between Heads of State?" President Hayes asked.

The soldier shrugged. "You requested the meeting. The conditions are not negotiable. Fulfill them or go back through the Chapa'ai. Enjoy the asteroid impact."

Jack scrutinized the speaker. An officer, presumably, as he was doing the talking. Mediterranean bronzed skin, black hair showing around the edges of a sand-colored combat helmet, and a moustache. On Earth Jack would have guessed him to be Turkish, probably Special Forces, but the rifle would have looked out of place. It had a bullpup configuration, with a short broad rear-mounted magazine that was more like an ammo pack than a conventional mag, and it had a remarkably narrow muzzle aperture; only about 2 or 3 millimeters. Taking into consideration the massive damage done to Jennings' shoulder, caused by such a small caliber projectile, Jack guessed that the weapon fired hyper-velocity flechette rounds.

Jack would have liked to ask questions about the weapon but he doubted if he'd get any answers. Instead he sighed and began to unbutton his jacket. A soldier, a woman who shared the officer's skin and hair color but lacked the moustache, handed him a plastic bag.

The prisoner Wilson had regained his feet after being felled by Chekov. "You'll have to untie me," he pointed out, "if you want me to undress."

One of the soldiers drew a spear-pointed dagger. He tugged at Wilson's clothing and used the knife to cut it away. Another followed the same course with Jennings, who had escaped from his cuffs but had one unusable arm and a damaged thumb on the other hand, and with Parker. Jack, President Hayes, and Colonel Chekov undressed in a more conventional fashion and deposited their clothes in the bags provided.

"Thank goodness I've been using the White House gym," the President commented. "I've heard of putting the other side at a disadvantage in negotiations but, really, I think this is taking the idea a little too far."

"You will be provided with clothes before you meet the Beloved Queen," the Commonwealth officer informed him.

"That's a relief," Hayes said. "I won't have to worry quite as much about the media finding out. I dread to think what _Saturday Night Live_ or _The Daily Show_ would have done with it – and the Conservatives would probably have called me 'depraved' and ignored the part where I had to strip off at gunpoint."

Jack put his shorts into the plastic bag. "I'm just glad I remembered to put on clean underwear."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

After passing through the Gate they had to go through decontamination showers. Clothes, the tunic, pants, and jacket that Jack had seen many people wearing on his visit to Shuruppak, were provided after the shower. Another Gate trip followed.

On reaching the final destination the three Trust prisoners were hustled away under heavy guard. Jack, President Hayes, and Colonel Chekov were guarded just as heavily but treated with more courtesy. They were driven through a city, even more impressive than the one on Shuruppak, and taken to what could only be a palace. A white stone building, standing amidst landscaped lawns and groves of trees, with fountains and marble statues reached by gravel paths. Rather to Jack's surprise they were not taken into the palace but were led along one of the paths to a little plaza by a fountain. Ninmah awaited them there.

Or so Jack thought. "Queen Ninmah," he greeted her, "this is the leader of my country. President Henry Hayes. Also Colonel of Aviation Aleksei Chekov, of the Russian Federation, Earth's other major nation. He's the most senior Russian officer who could make it to the Stargate inside the time you specified and he's fully authorized to speak for the Russians."

"You speak not to Ninmah, Colonel O'Neill," the dark-haired woman said, her accent much more foreign than that of Ninmah when speaking English. Her hair was tied back severely, rather than hanging loose as Ninmah's had done when Jack had last met her, and she wore a plain dark green skirt and top. A Goa'uld ribbon device was on her left hand. "You speak to Shamhat."

"Shamhat?" Hayes looked at Jack and raised an eyebrow.

"Ninmah's host," Jack explained. He raised an eyebrow at the human girl who provided the Queen with her body. "I take it that it's Host Day? This isn't important enough for her to ask you to put it off for a day?"

"You think I give her body only so I not work, just play on water?" Shamhat's lip curled. "She choose me from _adi šār_ to be her host. I have to write paper, give reasons, show… _ummênūtu_."

Jack hoped that the woman wasn't going to say anything important in Akkadian, as Daniel wasn't there to translate, but he didn't ask for clarification and let her continue without interrupting.

"I was _rabi ki__ṣ__ri_ – commander over two hundred forty, in army, on ha'tak," Shamhat said. "I help Ninmah make plan to kill your planet."

'Just great,' Jack thought. 'A Captain of Space Marines. She'll be about as soft and fluffy as Carter.' It occurred to him that Shamhat was probably a close combat expert; with that training, and her enhanced Goa'uld strength, she hardly needed the ribbon device and the guard detail, a dozen armed men standing twenty yards away, was window dressing.

"If you're the, uh, host," President Hayes said, "what authority do you have? Can you call off the attack on Earth?"

"No," Shamhat admitted. "You speak to me; if I like what you say, I call Queen Ninmah."

The President frowned. "I suppose I don't have a choice," he said. "Very well. You're going to destroy our planet because of something that we didn't do."

"Missiles came through Chapa'ai from Tau'ri world," Shamhat said. "Poison made by Tok'ra, they give to you." She folded her arms.

"I didn't give the order, our military didn't do it, it was criminal individuals," Hayes went on. "They stole the Stargate, stole the missiles, and launched the attacks all on their own. We caught two of the ones who came up with the plan, and one of those who actually launched the missiles. One of the others was killed when we recaptured the Gate. The ones who escaped seem to have been fallen into the hands of the… Goa'uld," he stumbled over the pronunciation. "They were implanted with, uh, symbiotes and sent back to Earth to try to start a nuclear war between my country and Colonel Chekov's."

"That is all true," Chekov confirmed. "We were within moments of launching nuclear strikes that would have destroyed both our countries and killed most of the people on Earth."

"And why they attack Shuruppak?" Shamhat asked.

"Ask them," Jack suggested. "That's why we brought them along. They claimed they were trying to protect Earth and they were mainly targeting Baal's worlds. But what the hell they thought they were doing… As far as we can tell they killed about two hundred thousand Jaffa loyal to Baal, but who maybe could have been brought over to the rebel cause in the future; something like eighty thousand actual rebel Jaffa, including an army that had Baal's loyalists pinned down and had pretty much seized control of a planet; a handful of Baal's subordinate Goa'uld; and seven Tok'ra operatives; two of whom had worked their way up to planetary commanders and were providing the Tok'ra with intelligence on every move Baal made. And, of course, they hit your city."

"Cities," Shamhat corrected him. "Four biggest cities on Shuruppak."

"Each with a population as big as a lot of whole planets," Jack said. "Yes, it was a terrible crime. The Trust are thieves and mass murderers. We at Stargate Command have been fighting them for years. If you want to execute the ones we've caught, well, that's fine by us. We'll stand up and cheer. We're tracking down the others and we'll get them before long. But if you wipe out our whole planet for something done by a few renegades then you're stepping down to their level."

"There are six and a half billion people on Earth," Colonel Chekov added. "Only three hundred million are in America. To slay the Russians, the Chinese, the Indians, the Poles, and the people of a hundred other nations, for the sins of a small group of Americans who acted against the wishes of their own leader, would be a terrible injustice."

"It was a dreadful thing," President Hayes said. "We had an unprovoked terrorist attack on our own country that killed three thousand. We were devastated and we went to war against the countries that had sheltered the terrorists. I can't even imagine how it must feel to have lost three million. But I didn't order it, and neither did any other legitimate official of the American government, and the people who carried out the attack are criminals and murderers in our eyes just as much as in yours. We will catch those who remain, if you give us a little more time, and hand them over to you for whatever punishment you deem appropriate."

"You claim this," Shamhat said, "but how we know it is true? They could be… you put blame on them when it was not them, they take punishment to save you."

"Scapegoats, you mean? No, these guys wouldn't take punishment to save anybody," Jack told her. "They'll lie their asses off to save themselves but, if you question them enough, you'll find out the truth."

"There is easy way," Shamhat said. She looked at each of the three Earth representatives in turn, staring into their eyes, her expression grim. "You take Goa'uld. They learn all your truth."

Jack felt a chill going through him. For a moment he thought that his heart was going to stop. "No," he said. "Not that."

"We can't accept it," President Hayes said. "That would be handing over every military and political secret we have."

Shamhat shrugged. "Then we make big rock hit your world," she said. "_Šeššet līmu_ ha'tak pull rock, make it go fast, strike in two _arhu_, kill all Tau'ri. You choose."

"How long is an Ar-hoo?" Jack asked, hoping that it was a year. In two years they might be able to come up with something to stop the asteroid or, at the least, evacuate millions of people to add to the thirty-five thousand that they'd managed to send through the Gate so far.

"This many day," Shamhat said. She held up her hands with fingers outspread, closed her fists, opened her fingers again, and repeated the gesture once more before lowering her hands. Thirty days. The asteroid would hit Earth in two months. "Again I say, take Goa'uld or your world die."

"I accept," Colonel Chekov said. "I would die for Mother Russia. To be enslaved by a Goa'uld might be worse – but better that than the death of everyone on Earth."

"It not for long time," Shamhat said. "You take Goa'uld, it read your thought, come out and go back to real host. One day only."

"In that case," President Hayes said, "I will agree."

Jack hesitated. Shamhat fixed her gaze on him and her lips tightened. It was Jack's biggest fear, the one thing that filled him with skin-crawling horror, a fate a thousand times worse than death in his eyes. Yet if he didn't go through with it the others' testimony was valueless. Only Jack could guarantee that Stargate Command hadn't acted unilaterally, going behind the President's back, launching the poison attack and blaming the Trust.

There was no point in relying on the Trust agents to tell the truth. The Goa'uld in Jennings and Parker would go to their deaths cheerfully if it meant that the Tau'ri would die along with them. They'd kill their hosts rather than leave the bodies to be occupied, and questioned, by Commonwealth symbiotes. Wilson might tell the truth, but he might not, and if he was tortured he'd tell the interrogators what they wanted to hear. Even if he was compelled to take a symbiote it might not be enough; he'd been involved in the planning, but not in the execution of the plan, and he couldn't absolutely confirm that Stargate Command hadn't been involved.

Jack was the only person who knew the full story and could unequivocally clear the Earth's governments of responsibility. The fate of the world really did depend on him. "I… I'll do it," he forced out.

Shamhat nodded. Her eyes flashed gold. "Thank you," she said, her accent suddenly gone. Queen Ninmah, now, not Shamhat; the difference was quite noticeable even when Ninmah was using the human version of her voice. "I assure you that the experience will not be unpleasant. I shall make the arrangements at once."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"I am sorry that I had to put you through that, President Hayes," Queen Ninmah said.

"It was… an interesting experience," the President replied, "although perhaps not one that I'd want to repeat."

"You may find some compensation in the shrinking of your enlarged prostate," Ninmah said. "And, of course, in that your planet shall not, after all, be annihilated by an asteroid impact two months from now. I have already given orders that the fleet will disengage and return to the Commonwealth."

"That's a relief," said the President. "Thank you." He tilted his head to one side. "My prostate?"

"Indeed," Ninmah said. "Your partner the First Lady may also benefit. We shall discuss your planet's reparations to us later. Perhaps the assets controlled by this 'Trust' and also the Asgard hyperdrive."

"That sounds reasonable," President Hayes said. "We'll work something out."

Jack was less sanguine about how the Asgard would react to their hyperdrive technology being promised to a potentially hostile power, but he decided to let the point go for the moment; he doubted if Ninmah would make an issue of it and, right now, all that mattered was that Earth wasn't going to be destroyed.

Ninmah turned to Colonel Chekov. "You are a noble warrior, Colonel. Visitors from your country would be welcome in the Commonwealth."

"Thank you, Queen Ninmah," Colonel Chekov said. "I shall inform my Government."

"And you, General Jack O'Neill," Ninmah went on. "I am told that you have a particular horror of Goa'uld possession and have had bad experiences in the past."

"You could say that," Jack said. "Even when it was one of the Tok'ra… it didn't go well."

"It is good that you overcame your feelings and accepted my condition," Ninmah said. "My people were full of wrath. I needed conclusive evidence of your people's innocence in order to be able to spare them. Lord Yu had told me that you were honorable, although I could not rely upon his judgment in his present condition, and Baal also said that he did not believe that you were behind the attack. It was out of character, in his assessment, and also too badly executed to have been your doing. Their testimony was not enough."

"Baal told you that? That was… decent of him, I guess," Jack said. "It almost makes up for him torturing me to death a few times. Not quite, but almost." He narrowed his eyes. "Were you really going to destroy Earth?"

"Oh, yes, certainly," Ninmah told him. "I had no choice. The will of the people is paramount."

"Even when it was just a blind cry for revenge?"

"Even then," Ninmah said. "Try ruling thirty-two billion people some time. It isn't easy."

"Can I ask why you had Shamhat handle the meeting?" Jack asked.

"I took a liking to you when we first met," Ninmah said. "After the attack that liking turned into bitter hatred at your 'treachery'. I did not want to risk my decisions being affected in either direction by my feelings. Shamhat had less emotional involvement and could be trusted to be impartial." She smiled. "It worked out well in the end, did it not?"

"I guess so," Jack said, "apart from scaring the crap out of me for a moment."

"I apologize," Ninmah said. "As in the case of your President, the repairs to your body may serve as compensation."

"My prostate was in fine shape," Jack claimed.

"Your knee, I am told, was not," Ninmah responded. "It is now."

"Oh." Jack bent down and put a hand on his knee. He straightened up, flexed the limb, and took a step forward and a step back. "Hey, that is better!" He gave a wide smile. "It hadn't really registered on me, what with everything else on my mind, but it doesn't hurt at all and there isn't any of that grating sensation when I move it. Thanks. Thanks a lot, Queen Ninmah."

"A small repayment," she said, "for you have delivered unto me our true enemies."

"Oh. Yes. So, what's going to happen to them?"

"I promised my people that the ones responsible for the attack upon Shuruppak would burn," Ninmah replied. "I keep my word. So shall it be. They shall die by fire."

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

"We're saved," Jack announced, as he emerged from the Gate. "The destruction of Earth has been cancelled."

"That's right," President Hayes confirmed. "We did it. The evacuations can stop."

"Are you alright, sir?" the Head of the Presidential Protection Detail asked. He frowned at the Gateroom guards who had been pointing a formidable array of weaponry at the President of the United States.

"I'm fine, Brad," the President assured him.

"We'll have to be checked out in the infirmary," Jack said. "It's standard procedure. It won't take long, sir, and then you can go back to running the country." He resisted the temptation to add 'and try out your new, improved, prostate.'

"It's been quite an experience, General O'Neill," President Hayes said.

"It has that, Mr. President. It has indeed."

Vala Mal Doran intercepted them as they left the Gateroom. "It all worked out, then? This planet is safe? Are you going to shower me with gold and jewels now?"

"What do you think, Mr. President?" Jack asked.

"Her services played a significant part," Hayes agreed. "I think a certain amount of showering would be in order. A million dollars in gold seems about right."

"Oh, thank you," Vala exclaimed. "That's wonderful!" Her forehead creased. "What's a dollar?"

"I'll get Daniel to explain it to you," Jack promised her, over his shoulder, as he headed for the infirmary. "As for me, I have something important to catch up on. Guys," he called, addressing all SGC staff within earshot, "while I was away, did anyone tape _The Simpsons_?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Epilogue**

"It is not in strict accordance with the facts," Teal'c said, "but, as a dramatic presentation, your show _Hak'tyl_ is… impressive. The adventures are sufficiently exciting, the actor portraying the false god Moloc shows his stupidity and evil in convincing fashion, and although the actress playing the part of Ishta does not resemble her in appearance she is adequately charismatic and almost matches the real Ishta in athleticism and ability in simulated combat. I believe that this dramatization would be popular with the Jaffa."

"It has been extremely successful here," Ninmah said. "It is a favorite both of myself and of Shamhat."

"Do you watch it together or separately?" Sam asked.

"Together," Ninmah replied. "We make comments to each other, share laughs at the humorous sections, and weep together at the tragedies."

"So you can have a Girls' Night all by yourself? It's a side of being a Goa'uld that had never occurred to me," Sam said.

"And now we can share the taste of chocolate," Ninmah said. "Of all the things from Earth that you have presented that is the one that I believe will be most popular with my people."

"I really liked that _pennigu_ cake," Sam said, "and I think it would go down pretty well with other girls on Earth."

"I also found the _pennigu_ to be tasty and satisfying," Teal'c commented. "A confection comparable to the best of those that I have experienced on Earth."

"What about our movies and TV shows?" Jack asked Ninmah. "What did you make of _The Simpsons_, for instance?"

Ninmah shook her head. "I found some of it amusing," she said, "but for the most part it aroused no emotions in me whatsoever apart from incomprehension. It is too closely tied to your culture and strikes no chords in us. The test audience also reacted poorly."

"It's a shame," Jack said. "Maybe when your people get to know ours better."

"Perhaps," said Ninmah. "I was far more impressed by _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_."

"I would have thought an American High School would be too alien an environment for your people to understand," Sam said.

"There are parallels within the social structures," Ninmah said, "and your legends of vampires closely resemble our own tales of the _Ekimmu_ and the _Uruku_. The young heroine is extremely personable."

"Everybody likes a blonde who kicks ass," Sam said, grinning.

"Indeed," said Teal'c.

"Our test audiences shared that opinion," Ninmah said, "and Buffy's rejection of the social elite in favor of the ostracized Willow makes her an immediately sympathetic character. Young men in the audience also identified strongly with the boy Xander. Yes, we would be interested in purchasing the series _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_. Also _Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon_ – I loved that one – and the _Indiana Jones_ films."

"Everybody likes an intrepid archaeologist who kicks ass," Daniel said, grinning at Sam.

Teal'c opened his mouth, presumably to say 'Indeed', but reconsidered and contented himself with raising an eyebrow and giving a half nod.

"You are correct," Ninmah said. "That reminds me, Daniel, you have not yet gone water-skiing with Shamhat."

"There were some… distractions," Daniel said. "Maybe some other time." His eyes met Jack's in a mute appeal for help.

Jack answered the call. "So, Queen Ninmah, I hear you didn't think much of _Casablanca_," he remarked. "What was the problem? That's one of our all-time classics."

"It was in shades of grey rather than proper colors," Ninmah said. "It was very strange to my eyes. Perhaps if you had it colored properly it would not be so alien to us."

"Sacrilege," Jack muttered.

"The leading characters were interesting," Ninmah went on, "but I understood little of what was going on. No, I think that the Earth movies that will find the largest audience within the Commonwealth are those which consist largely of people smiting each other with swords."

"Yeah, and your space battle spectaculars should do will on Earth," Jack said. "The things that rely on cultural reference points aren't going to travel so well. Swords, light sabers, bullwhips, maybe an occasional gunfight, and of course the ever-popular Death Stars and big honking space guns."

"Indeed," Teal'c agreed. He tilted his head to one side. "I wonder if _Wormhole Extreme_ would find acceptance in the Commonwealth?"

Jack shuddered. "I sincerely hope not," he said, "at least not unless they remake it with a much bigger production budget."

"That is a valid point, O'Neill," Teal'c conceded.

"Next time I'll bring along _The Princess Bride_," Sam suggested to the Queen. "I think you'd like that one."

"I shall look forward to it," Ninmah said. She looked at Daniel. "And I have not forgotten about the water-skiing. We must make definite arrangements."

Jack glanced at his watch. "I hate to break things up," he said, "but we're due back at the SGC soon. It's time go, people."

"Very well," Ninmah said. "This has been a pleasant diversion but I, too, must return to my work."

As the members of SG1 prepared for their return to Earth Jack seized an opportunity for a quiet word with Queen Ninmah on a more serious subject. "There's something I've been meaning to ask you," he said. "How could your people tell that the poison missiles came from Earth? Do you have a way of telling where an incoming wormhole originates? That would be something we'd pay a lot to have."

Ninmah shook her head. "No," she said. "It was far simpler than that. If you wait a moment I will show you." She departed from the room and returned a moment later with a small piece of twisted and blackened metal. She handed it to Jack. "We recovered this from the debris," she explained.

He scrutinized it closely and was able to make out lettering. "Rocket M-55," he read. "Newport Army Ammunition Plant, Vermillion County, Indiana, USA." He raised his eyes to meet Ninmah's. "As easy as that, huh? I guess working out where it came from wasn't exactly… rocket science."

**The End**


End file.
